Chinese semiconductor industry accused the US of discrimination due to new restrictive measures

Chinese authorities have already formally protested the adoption of a package of laws by their US counterparts, which provides companies with subsidies to build facilities in the US in exchange for, among other things, a promise not to develop production in China for ten years.
In any case, vice chairman of the China Semiconductor Industry Association Yu Xiekang said without going into details at an event in Nanjing that parts of the US package of laws \"clearly discriminate against China\" and that the US initiative generally aims to support China's competitors in the foreign policy arena.
According to the industry association, some clauses of the US government's subsidy program for the national semiconductor industry contradict the fair trade principles supported by the WTO.According to Yu Sekan, the Chinese authorities should continue to support the national semiconductor industry in order to eliminate bottlenecks that hinder its further technological development.
Others at the event added that the U.S.
package of laws introduces more uncertainty into the development environment of the entire global industry, and Chinese authorities, educational institutions and companies should counteract this together.

SK hynix will decide on U.S.location by early next year

South Korean conglomerate SK Group said last month that it intends to allocate up to $22 billion over the coming years to U.S.
science and industry, of which $15 billion will go directly to the U.S.
semiconductor sector.
Unofficially, SK hynix plans to build a chip packaging and testing facility in the country by 2025, with the location to be chosen by early 2023.Image source: SK hynixThis was reported by Reuters citing its own sources.
According to reports, SK hynix is ready to spend several billion dollars to build the plant and create about 1,000 jobs, while choosing the site for the new company will be given preference to areas in the relative proximity of universities that can supply it with qualified personnel.
The U.S.
enterprise SK hynix will start mass testing and packaging of chips in the period from 2025 to 2026.Official representatives of the Korean company has no comment on these rumors, only referring to the desire of the parent structure SK Group to allocate $ 15 billion for the development of the semiconductor industry in the region.
In addition to the enterprise for packaging and testing chips, the Korean giant is going to invest in creating a network of research centers in the United States.
This type of activity will also allow the company to qualify for government subsidies as part of the recently passed package of laws.

If U.S.government fails to provide subsidies, Intel will spend more on building facilities in Europe

Intel CEO Patrick Gelsinger's activism last month was aimed at encouraging U.S.
lawmakers to pass a $52 billion package that would subsidize the national semiconductor industry.
The company even said that it might focus on investments in Europe if it does not get support.
It will spend 12 billion euros to expand facilities in Ireland, and a chip packaging and testing facility is set to appear in Italy, with 4.5 billion euros earmarked for the project.
Research centers will appear and expand in France and Poland.
However, in the case of European investments, Intel expects significant material support from the local authorities.Last Wednesday, as noted by CNBC, Patrick Gelsinger allowed himself to say that if U.S.
lawmakers do not form the conditions for granting subsidies to the U.S.
semiconductor industry, the company will have to focus more efforts in Europe.
From the very beginning, as the head of Intel stressed, the company was counting on the support of the authorities in the construction of a new complex in the state of Ohio.
It will either take a long time to build and reach a modest scale if the company has to finance it at its own expense, or reach a significant scale in a more modest time if the authorities provide subsidies.
In the first case, the budget could be as low as $20 billion, while in the second it could be as high as $80 billion.According to Gelsinger, Intel canceled a groundbreaking ceremony for a manufacturing complex in Ohio scheduled for this summer because it wants to make sure it gets state subsidies first.
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has suggested that Gelsinger is using the delay in building the facilities in the U.S.
to pressure lawmakers.
On the other hand, the governor's own sources in both houses of the U.S.
legislature make it clear that a $52 billion subsidy package will be passed soon.
State officials are prepared to give Intel about $2 billion in incentives to build the manufacturing complex, of which $700 million will be used to build the engineering infrastructure.
Intel representatives explained that Ohio attracted them not only by availability of developed base for qualified personnel training, but also by access to sufficient water resources.

U.S.Secretary of Commerce urged lawmakers to speed up $52 billion in subsidies for the semiconductor industry

President Joseph Biden already expressed concerns about the protracted consideration of the bill to allocate $52 billion in subsidies for the U.S.
semiconductor industry.
Now Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo appealed to lawmakers to speed up work in this area - she thinks it's crucial to pass the law by the beginning of September.Source image: Intel \"Mark my words, if Labor Day passes and Congress does not approve the package of laws, these companies will not wait and will expand their presence in other countries,\" she thought it necessary to warn members of the American officials.
This year, Labor Day in the U.S.
is September 5, and in August, U.S.
lawmakers are on vacation, so ideally the final version of the law should be approved in the summer.
Apparently, in her speech, Gina Raimondo referred to companies like TSMC, Samsung, Intel and GlobalWafers, which confirmed the intention to build new semiconductor plants in the U.S.
announced yesterday plans of Taiwan's GlobalWafers to build a silicon wafer fab in the U.S., which could cover all the needs of the local semiconductor industry by 2025, to some extent dependent on the willingness of U.S.
authorities to subsidize the construction.
At least, GlobalWafers head Doris Hsu shared exactly such considerations with Gina Raimondo, referring to the upcoming $5 billion cost of building the facility.According to the minister, the consequences of delaying the passage of this package of laws for national security would be most unfortunate.
Intel CEO Patrick Gelsinger also visited Washington this month to consult with top officials.
He said the company's project to build two $20 billion advanced facilities in Ohio will largely depend on subsidies from the authorities.
If they do not, Intel will either have to stretch out construction over time or scale it back.

Chinese authorities are mulling extending the electric car subsidy program for this year

According to many experts, China's electric car market could not have become the world's largest without active support from the government, which since 2009 has spent $14.8 billion on subsidy payments to buyers of private and commercial vehicles with traction electric motors.
The subsidy program was set to end this year, but authorities are mulling extending it until the end of next year.Image source: BYDThis was reported by Reuters, citing its own knowledgeable sources.
In April this year, sales of new vehicles in China fell by 48%, while sales of electric cars and hybrids rose by 45% to 299,000 units.
In March, the volume of sales of cars with new types of power units more than doubled, so the Chinese authorities want to compensate the economic slowdown provoked by the new lockdowns with new stimulating measures.Initially, the local authorities wanted to refuse subsidizing the purchase of electric cars by Chinese citizens back in 2020, but the pandemic prolonged the program for a couple of years.
It is noteworthy that about 40% of the Chinese market of electric cars now are cars worth about $4,000, most of them are not covered by subsidies.
But buyers of more expensive models are able to save a couple of thousand dollars from the car.At the same time the value of subsidies in the years decreased, and tax incentives for buyers of cars with power plants of the new type will be reduced.
If this year, the authorities allow buyers to not pay tax on the purchase of the vehicle, from next year will apply a rate of 5%.
Initially, the Chinese government wanted to introduce the tax at a rate of 10%, but in the current economic conditions it was decided to act in stages.