Is Donald Trump Administration Considering A New Round Of Tariffs On Semiconductors? Report Reveals....

(MENAFN- Live Mint) The US President Donald Trump administration is weighing another broad tariff package targeting semiconductors, reported Politico on Thursday, citing eight individuals familiar with the discussions.

The proposed measures could extend beyond chips themselves to a broader range of electronic products that rely on semiconductors, including laptops, gaming consoles and data centre servers, according to the report.

US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick is backing a framework under which foreign companies could receive tariff relief based on their commitments to invest in semiconductor manufacturing in the United States. The approach is aimed at encouraging greater domestic chip production, the report said.

Washington is also considering introducing the proposed semiconductor tariffs gradually, although the framework could undergo significant changes over the next few weeks or months, Politico reported.

LiveMint couldn't independently confirm the report.

The White House and the US Commerce Department had not immediately responded to requests for comment.

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US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer had said in May that the government was not planning to impose new semiconductor tariffs imminently. However, he stressed the importance of protecting the sector through duties to encourage the return of chip manufacturing to the United States.

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The prospect of fresh tariffs on semiconductor imports is raising concerns across the US technology sector, which is already facing a limited supply of advanced chips as demand surges due to the rapid expansion of data centres supporting artificial intelligence.

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According to Politico, Industry representatives say they support Trump's push to increase semiconductor manufacturing in the US, but point out that building advanced chip plants requires investments running into billions of dollars and can take several years or even decades. In the meantime, US companies are likely to remain reliant on imports from major Asian suppliers such as Malaysia, South Korea and Taiwan, the report noted.

Taiwan alone accounts for more than 90% of global production of the most advanced semiconductors.

'Reshoring semiconductor manufacturing is top priority'

White House spokesperson Kush Desai stated,“Reshoring semiconductor manufacturing is a top priority for President Trump, whose policies have already secured hundreds of billions of dollars of investments in this key sector, adding, "The Trump administration remains focused on delivering more investments and economic relief for the American people while safeguarding our national security.”

'Getting supply chains de-risked is the central geopolitical question of our lifeline'

Most semiconductor products and components imported by the US are sourced from Asian trading partners. While the administration is pushing to expand advanced chip manufacturing domestically, trade hawks are also concerned about the national security risks posed by US technology companies' heavy reliance on Taiwanese semiconductors, particularly in the event of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan.

Michael Sobolik, a senior fellow at the right-leaning Hudson Institute think tank and a former aide to Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), said,“Getting supply chains de-risked is one of the central geopolitical questions of our lifetime." Sobolik mentioned,“It's going to be really expensive to, at scale, build a lot of these chips in the United States, because there are a lot of other cheaper places in the world where you can do that.”

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