South Korean President Moon Jae-in will visit the United States on the 21st of this month to attend the South Korea-US summit. Some experts predict that the supply chain of four core areas such as semiconductors will become the main topic. In this regard, the reporter interviewed Zhao Donggen, an honorary professor of economics at Myongji University in South Korea.In order to solve the chip shortage problem, the United States invited 19 multinational companies to hold an online semiconductor video conference on the 12th of last month. At the meeting, President Biden emphasized the necessity of investing in the semiconductor industry and expanding the country-centered supply chain.The United States is no longer a semiconductor power
In an exclusive interview, Cho Dong-geun, professor emeritus of the Department of Economics at Myongji University in South Korea, said that although the United States is a powerhouse in semiconductor technology, its manufacturing and production rely on other countries and regions.According to a report released by the Semiconductor Industry International (SEMI), the United States' share of the world's semiconductor manufacturing has dropped from 37% in 1990 to 12% now.Recently, due to the shortage of semiconductor supply, the production of American automobile factories has been in short supply, so the United States has emphasized the semiconductor technology alliance. South Korea, which ranks first in the world in the field of semiconductor memory, and Taiwan, which ranks first in the foundry semiconductor production market, have become the two major semiconductor production bases.Professor Cho Dong-geun said: "Although the United States wants to control the semiconductor ecosystem, its own strength is very weak, so it is very much looking forward to South Korea's development into foundry production."Meeting the China Challenge
While the United States is expanding its own semiconductor production, it is also focusing on preventing mainland China from challenging its semiconductor hegemony. Professor Zhao believes that the competition between China and the United States for semiconductor hegemony is a "foreseeable war" as well as a fateful war.He said, "Everyone knows about the Thucydides Trap. When the hegemony of a great power is threatened by an emerging power, there is a possibility of conflict between the two countries."But at the same time, China's fatal weakness in the semiconductor industry is its weakness in cutting-edge technology, which is why the United States is not too worried at present and can contain China.Professor Zhao said: "Although the Chinese government has invested huge amounts of money in the rise of semiconductors, experts generally believe that with the sanctions from the United States, it will be difficult for China to gain hegemony in the semiconductor industry." "The United States has most of the source technology of semiconductors, so the CCP is no match for the United States.South Korea faces a choice
Professor Zhao also believes that in the competition for technological hegemony between China and the United States, if South Korea cannot participate in the US-led semiconductor supply chain, its semiconductor industry will be hit.He said: "It is said that the semiconductor supply chain and semiconductor value chain are best for South Korea from an economic perspective. If it leaves this alliance, it will push the business to TSMC, which will result in South Korea not getting a share. TSMC, Intel, and Samsung should form an alliance, just like a fighter jet in flight, which will be beneficial to the country."The United States, which has strong technology and talent, has joined the semiconductor war, which has brought new challenges to South Korea. South Korea has been putting forward the strategically vague slogan of "Security, America, Economy and China". The so-called "Security, America, Economy and China" means that security depends on the United States and the economy depends on China. However, Professor Zhao believes that South Korea should restore the value alliance based on the market economy.He believes that as the conflict between China and the United States centered on semiconductors continues to intensify, South Korea has reached the "moment when it must make a choice."Pull Japan and South Korea to contain China's semiconductors,
The United States may be waiting for a "broken" industrial chain
According to Xinhua News Agency, the United States has recently interacted frequently with Japan and South Korea, promoting strengthened cooperation in areas such as the semiconductor supply chain, with the intention of establishing a semiconductor supply chain independent of China.Experts believe that although the United States, Japan and South Korea believe that they hold most of the key factors in future semiconductor manufacturing technology, it is difficult to build a semiconductor industry alliance without China. The chip manufacturing process is complicated and involves many companies in multiple economies. In the context of the fully globalized semiconductor industry chain, it is almost impossible for a few companies in a few countries to completely achieve "local production and local sales". China is the world's largest chip importer and consumer market. The semiconductor industry chain without China's participation can only be an incomplete industry chain.In mid-April, U.S. President Biden said at a joint press conference after talks with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga that the United States and Japan will strengthen cooperation in 5G communications, semiconductor supply chains, quantum computing, artificial intelligence and other fields. Prior to this, during a trilateral meeting between U.S. President's National Security Advisor Sullivan, Japan's National Security Agency Director Kitamura Shigeru, and South Korea's National Security Office Director Suh Hoon, the importance of ensuring the security of the semiconductor supply chain was clarified.According to Japanese media reports, the Japanese and US governments will set up a working group composed of relevant government departments of the two countries to share the responsibilities of chip research and development and production. The US also urged Japan to implement export controls on China in the field of semiconductors.Since the beginning of this year, the global shortage of automotive chips has caused major economies to worry about the semiconductor supply chain, and the United States and Europe have successively proposed to speed up the reconstruction of the semiconductor supply chain.After Biden took office, the U.S. government has continued to increase its support for the semiconductor industry. The United States is trying to use chip manufacturing as a starting point to accelerate its return to control of the global semiconductor supply chain.On February 24, Biden said he would seek $37 billion in congressional appropriations to boost domestic chip production. He also signed an executive order that day requiring federal agencies to assess supply chain risks in key industries such as semiconductors. Of the more than $2 trillion infrastructure plan Biden proposed in March, $50 billion will be invested in the semiconductor industry.Biden held the "Semiconductor and Supply Chain Resilience CEO Summit" at the White House on April 12. He said at the meeting, "China and other countries are not waiting, and the United States has no reason to wait. We will invest heavily in areas such as semiconductors and batteries."Japanese experts believe that the semiconductor industries of Japan and the United States are complementary. The United States is strong in chip design, while Japan has advantages in semiconductor materials and manufacturing equipment. If the United States wants to build a semiconductor supply chain in its own country, a stable supply of materials and equipment is very important, and the United States needs to cooperate with Japan. Nevertheless, the Japanese and American combination cannot conquer the world. The chip manufacturing process is cumbersome and involves many companies in multiple economies. In the context of the full globalization of the semiconductor industry chain, it is almost impossible to completely localize production and local consumption.People of insight in Japan are worried that Japan's following the United States on the semiconductor issue will affect its economic cooperation with China. Norihiro Fujito, chief investment strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities, believes that Japan's economy is highly dependent on China, and the Suga government must take into account the stability of Sino-Japanese relations.Compared with Japan, South Korea's attitude towards the US's "wooing" is more subtle. The US hopes to strengthen the semiconductor supply chain centered on domestic production, and the dominant position of South Korean semiconductor companies in the chip manufacturing field may be weakened as a result.A report recently released by Bank of America shows that more than 70% of the world's semiconductors are manufactured by Asian economies, with Taiwan and South Korea being particularly capable of high-end chip manufacturing.South Korea's "National Daily" published an editorial in early April saying that the US government is increasingly blatantly pursuing "semiconductor hegemony."There are three main reasons why the United States is wooing Japan and South Korea to establish a semiconductor supply chain: first, China's rapid rise in the high-tech field has caused fear and containment in the United States; second, the tight global chip supply has prompted major economies to want to establish a relatively complete industrial chain; third, most of the world's advanced semiconductor production is currently concentrated in Taiwan, China, and the tense Sino-US relations have made major economies feel uneasy.During Trump's administration, the United States directly suppressed Chinese technology companies and the semiconductor industry mainly through presidential executive orders. After Biden took office, the United States changed its practice of making enemies everywhere and fighting alone, and improved relations with allies such as the European Union, Japan and South Korea, trying to establish a semiconductor industry alliance that excludes China and weave a "blockade network."Gu Wenjun, chief analyst at semiconductor research company Strategy Analytics, recently wrote an article pointing out that the Biden administration is trying to establish an industrial alliance and use "bans + market competition" to concentrate key parts of the global semiconductor industry chain in the United States, in order to encircle and block China's semiconductor industry.Although the United States is trying hard to win over its allies, no country can ignore China, the world's largest chip importer and consumer market. According to Chinese customs statistics, China's total integrated circuit imports in 2020 reached US$350 billion, an increase of 14.6%. Giving up the Chinese market is an extremely difficult decision for any semiconductor company.
Optimized drivetrain and new semiconductor technologies enable the design of energy-efficient electr
Optimized drivetrain and new semiconductor technologies enable the design of energy-efficient electr
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