Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.’s tens of billions of dollars of investments in the US help reduce the archipelago’s trade surplus with its primary security partner, a senior Taiwanese official said, as export-reliant economies brace for US President-elect Donald Trump, who is threatening additional tariffs on imports.
Taiwan can further cut its surplus in bilateral trade with the US by buying more energy, agricultural produce and weapons from America, central bank Governor Yang Chin-long told lawmakers on Thursday. He was responding to concerns that the incoming Trump administration could seek to penalize Taipei for its roughly $50 billion trade surplus.
“Our semiconductor and tech products are strategic goods, and US-Taiwan trade has been mutually beneficial,” Yang said. “The US comes up with designs, and we help them with manufacturing. They need our products.”
As president in 2017, Trump signed an executive order asking federal agencies to review partners that are causing a trade deficit for the US, including Taiwan, although that did not trigger any substantial action against Taipei back then.
Still, the Trump administration in 2020 managed to convince TSMC to make advanced semiconductors on American soil. The Taiwanese chipmaker has so far pledged more than $65 billion in investments with the Biden administration promising billions in financial support.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.