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☆ KLA Corp forecasts upbeat fourth-quarter on robust demand for chip tools
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 26 (Reuters) - Chip tools maker KLA Corp (KLAC.O) forecast fourth-quarter revenue and profit above Wall Street expectations on Wednesday, riding on plans by chipmakers to expand production and build new factories in Europe and the United States. Chipmakers are scrambling to boost capacity and tool makers including KLA and Applied Materials (AMAT.O) will gain from this. KLA makes tools for inspecting the silicon wafer discs, on which semiconductors are built, for defects. KLA forecast current-quarter revenue between $2.13 billion and $2.38 billon, compared to analysts' estimates of $2.17 billion, according to Refinitiv data. Revenue in the third quarter ended March 31 rose 6.3% to $2.43 billion, beating estimates of $2.38 billion.

☆ TSMC aims to get newest chip technology into cars faster
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Stephen Nellis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Many of the automotive industry's biggest chip suppliers such as NXP Semiconductor (NXPI.O) and STMircoelectronics NV (STM.DE) tap TSMC to make their chips. But automotive chips must meet a higher bar for ruggedness and longevity than the chips that go into consumer electronics. TSMC has special manufacturing processes for the automotive industry that typically arrive a couple years after similar processes for consumer chips. In the past it has then taken automotive chip firms extra time to create chip designs for those specialized manufacturing lines. At a conference in Silicon Valley on Wednesday, TSMC unveiled new software that will enable automotive chip designers to start work on their designs about two years sooner.

☆ Commerce Dept. Outlines Plans to Fund Cutting-Edge Chip Research
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Ana Swanson | Don Clark | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The plans are part of the Biden administration’s effort to reinvigorate semiconductor manufacturing and ensure that the United States has a steady supply of chips necessary to feed its factories and support its national defense. The Commerce Department has been charged with doling out $50 billion to revitalize the industry, including $11 billion devoted to research and development. “It should be on areas that no one company can solve alone,” she said. Companies, universities, lawmakers and local governments have been lobbying the administration to set up an outpost of the new organization in their area. Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the majority leader and an author of the legislation that funded the semiconductor investment, said in a statement Tuesday that he was pushing to make Albany, N.Y., a site for the new organization.

☆ UBS says this semiconductor stock is a ‘buy’ — and doubles its price target
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Zavier Ong | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

UBS is upgrading Taiwanese foundry United Microelectronics from "neutral" to "buy." The Swiss investment bank raised its price target on the stock from 37 Taiwan dollars ($1.20) to NT$75, representing a potential upside of nearly 50% from its closing price on Wednesday. UMC's year-to-date rerating reflects the "increasing optimism" about the semiconductor industry's recovery and the greater profitability of the stock, the analysts said. UBS isn't the only bull UBS isn't the only bank bullish on United Microelectronics. In a note on April 19, the bank maintained its "outperform" rating on the stock and raised its price target on the stock to NT$60.

☆ TSMC’s Tough Quarter Complicates Its U.S. Chip Ambitions
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Jacky Wong | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

The $53 billion Chips Act seeks to end the U.S.’s reliance on foreign-made semiconductors, especially those used by the Pentagon. The latest results from the world’s largest contract chip manufacturer confirm the grim outlook facing the semiconductor industry. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.’s weak earnings could also make already difficult negotiations with Uncle Sam over big chip sector investments in the U.S. even more fraught. TSMC is an industry bellwether that supplies Apple and Nvidia , and is negotiating with Washington for a hefty chunk of the chip manufacturing subsidies recently authorized by Congress. Its revenue in dollar terms for the three months ended in March fell 5% from a year earlier, figures released Thursday showed, or a 16% decline quarter over quarter.

read moreTSMC forecast revenue of $15.2 billion to $16 billion in the quarter ending June 30, down from $18.16 billion a year prior. TSMC, Asia's most valuable listed company, said first-quarter revenue dropped 4.8% year-on-year, in line with the company's previous forecast. Net revenue from China grew to 15% from 12%, while net revenue from North America fell to 63% from 69%. read moreThe chipmaker forecast 2023 capital expenditure of $32-36 billion, unchanged from a previous estimate. CEO Wei said TSMC was evaluating the possibility of building a speciality fabrication plant in Europe for auto chips.

☆ Asian stocks ease, dollar subdued as investors tread with caution
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Ankur Banerjee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) was 0.16% lower, while Japan's Nikkei (.N225) was up 0.07%. China's blue-chip CSI 300 Index (.CSI300) was down 0.16%, while the Shanghai Composite Index (.SSEC) eased 0.22%. Traders are bracing for meetings from central banks in the next few weeks as easing worries over the banking sector brings inflation and monetary policy back into focus. In currency markets, the U.S. dollar index fell 0.039%, with the euro up 0.04% to $1.0958. The yen weakened 0.08% to 134.83 per dollar, while sterling was last trading at $1.2432, down 0.05% on the day.

☆ TSMC Seeks Up to $15 Billion From U.S. for Chip Plants but Objects to Conditions
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Yang Jie | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The $53 billion Chips Act seeks to end the U.S.’s reliance on foreign-made semiconductors, especially those used by the Pentagon. It is the latest example of the federal government using its cash to remake an industry it sees as crucial to national security. The world’s biggest contract chip maker is pushing back on some of the conditions Washington has attached to chip-factory subsidies as it looks for up to $15 billion in government money. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., which plans to invest $40 billion in two chip factories in Arizona, is concerned about rules that could require it to share profits from the factories and provide detailed information about operations, said people familiar with the situation.

☆ TSMC seeks up to $15 bln from US but objects to certain conditions- WSJ
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

April 19 (Reuters) - Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd (2330.TW) is pushing back on some of the conditions the United States has attached to chip-factory subsidies as it seeks up to $15 billion from the U.S. government, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday. TSMC, which in December more than tripled its planned investment at its new Arizona plant to $40 billion, is concerned about rules that could require it to share profits from the factories and provide detailed information about operations, WSJ reported, citing people familiar with the matter. TSMC declined to comment when contacted by Reuters. Reporting by Jose Joseph in Bengaluru; Editing by Varun H K and Dhanya Ann ThoppilOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ NXP CEO applauds EU Chips Act, seeks clarity on China restrictions
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Conor Humphries | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

ENNISKERRY, Ireland, April 19 (Reuters) - The chief executive of Dutch-headquartered computer chip maker NXP Semiconductors (NXPI.O) on Wednesday applauded the passage of the EU Chips Act this week, but said the industry could use more clarity on export restrictions to China. Kurt Sievers said his company, which makes chips for the automotive industry as well for 5G telephone base stations, had been hit by successive rounds of U.S. export restrictions on China's Huawei. Around 38% of NXP's sales are to Chinese manufacturers, about half of which are processed and then re-exported to Western buyers. "A lot of that going forward could eventually move out of China, which doesn't harm us," he said. "I think it would be fantastic if there was a lot of synchronization between the U.S. Chips Act and the European Chips Act in terms of what to support such that it will be complementary," he said.

☆ Bank of America is doubling down on a lesser-known chip stock — and gives it 50% upside
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Zavier Ong | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Nvidia has undoubtedly been one of the sector's biggest winners this year, but Bank of America is doubling down on a lesser-known chip stock. That's significantly higher than the average potential upside of 16.1% given by analysts covering the stock, according to FactSet data. Bank of America described the firm as a "top pick" among European auto semiconductors and said the stock remains cheaper than its peers. The bank said it believes concerns about the company's poor track record and high Apple concentration are "likely to fade over the course of the next 12-18 months" as it improves gross margins and operating margins. Apple's share of the firm's revenue is also likely to drop to around 10% by end-2024, the bank added.

☆ These 3 Club stocks just hit their highest levels in a year. Here's where we stand on them now
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Kevin Stankiewicz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Three Club holdings — Salesforce (CRM), Linde (LIN) and Nvidia (NVDA) — just reached their highest levels of the past 12 months, which Wall Street generally views as encouraging. At the same time, however, some investors may be wondering whether hitting a new 52-week high might signal that it's time to take some profits. Here's how the Club is thinking about our positions in these three stocks that reached this juncture during Tuesday's session. Our last purchase of Salesforce stock was Dec. 21, scooping up 25 shares around $130 each on the belief that investors were way too negative on the company. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade.

Beijing's retaliatory strategy against U.S. chip sanctions is a bigger worry. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing has so far remained relatively unscathed since Washington stepped up sanctions to hobble China’s domestic semiconductor development. Second, even if Chinese companies account for just 11% of TSMC’s top line, its other customers are far more exposed to the People's Republic. How Beijing responds to American pressure will define the scope of TSMC’s recovery. In January, TSMC said its capital spending in 2023 would be between $32 billion and $36 billion, compared to $36.3 billion in 2022.

[1/7] U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on childcare and eldercare costs during an event in the Rose Garden at the White House in Washington, U.S., April 18, 2023. Biden signed the order, which includes over 50 specific actions, in the White House Rose Garden, flanked by family caregivers, people with disabilities, older adults and early childhood and long-term care workers. "The executive order doesn't require any new spending. The executive order was also welcomed by AARP, a major lobbying group for older Americans, and the AFL-CIO, the largest U.S. labor organization. Heather Boushey of the White House Council of Economic Advisers (CEA) told reporters that childcare and eldercare shortages and soaring costs limited the ability of many women to work, constraining labor supply and dampening economic growth.

☆ Yellen to lay out U.S. economic priorities on China in Thursday speech
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Yellen, who said last week she still hopes to visit Beijing to meet with her new Chinese economic counterparts, will deliver remarks at Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies, the Treasury said in a statement. Yellen's speech will detail the Biden administration's economic priorities on China, including securing U.S. national security interests, fostering "healthy" competition and cooperating, where possible, on global issues such as climate change, debt relief and macroeconomic stability. Yellen also is expected to highlight U.S. economic strength. A Treasury official said the speech comes at an opportune time just after Yellen also spoke last week with counterparts from G7 democracies, Australia and New Zealand. Another audience for the remarks is China's new economic leadership team led by Liu's replacement, Vice Premier He Lifeng.

☆ Biden signs executive order expanding access to dependent care aid as he gears up for 2024 bid
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Emma Kinery | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

In more than 50 executive actions, Biden is asking nearly every federal agency to expand care options without new spending. "And folks, care workers deserve to make a decent living and that's a fight I'm willing to have." The White House faces steep opposition to many of the social-spending proposals in the Republican-controlled House. Even before the pandemic in 2019, 76% of parents reported struggling to access affordable, dependable care, the White House said. The White House has long maintained that Biden's social-policy agenda is highly popular with the American public despite conservative gripes over costs.

☆ More than 200 companies have applied for CHIPS Act funding, Commerce Secretary Raimondo tells Cramer
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Rohan Goswami | In Rohangoswamicnbc | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

More than 200 companies from myriad sectors have applied for CHIPS Act funding, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo told CNBC's Jim Cramer on Friday, as part of what Raimondo called a mandate to invest "$50 billion in America's national security." The recipient companies are varied, but Raimondo told Cramer that some of the funds will be routed to "packaging companies, leading edge companies" within the U.S. "It has to be spent in America," the Commerce secretary told Cramer. "If you take our money, you can't expand in China for leading-edge" chips, Raimondo said. More than half of the applications cover the first tranche of CHIPS Act funding, which include mature-node and leading-edge chip facilities.

[1/3] U.S. President Joe Biden attends the groundbreaking of the new Intel semiconductor manufacturing facility in New Albany, Ohio, U.S., September 9, 2022. But all that new construction has a real estate problem. That would be a problem for the Biden administration, which has pushed through legislation to fuel the developments. A White House official said it was a "high-class problem" to have, adding: "Folks are finding places to build. The governors of South Carolina, Virginia and North Carolina have each proposed to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on readying industrial sites in the coming years.

☆ China concerned about Japan's plan to curb chipmaking gear exports
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BEIJING, April 13 (Reuters) - China is highly concerned about Japan's plan to put export curbs on 23 types of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, Wang Shouwen, a Chinese vice commerce minister, said. The comments were made on Wednesday during a meeting with Japan's ambassador, Hideo Tarumi, in Beijing. In a commerce ministry statement on Thursday, Wang urged Japan to follow World Trade Organization rules to maintain stability of global supply chains. Japan recently said it would restrict the chip equipment exports, aligning its technology trade controls with a U.S. push to curb China's ability to make advanced chips. Reporting by Beijing newsroom; Editing by Clarence Fernandez and Muralikumar AnantharamanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Harris to close out ‘Invest in America’ tour by announcing $300M in bridge repair funding
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Donald Judd | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —The Biden administration will announce nearly $300 million in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding to repair and replace bridges across eight states and the District of Columbia Thursday, closing out its three week “Invest in America” tour highlighting legislative achievements under President Joe Biden. Vice President Kamala Harris will make the announcement at the Arland D. Williams Jr. Memorial Bridge, which connects Washington, DC, to Northern Virginia and will receive $72 million in funding for repairs, the White House said. According to a fact sheet shared with CNN, the bridge serves over 88,000 vehicles per day. Thursday’s announcement marks the last stop on the administration’s “Invest in America” tour, which Biden launched last month by touring a semiconductor manufacturing plant in Durham, North Carolina. Per an administration official, 20 representatives from the Biden administration traveled to over 50 cities across 25 states during the tour, highlighting $435 billion in funding for 23,000 infrastructure projects in 4,500 cities and towns across the US.

☆ Intel to work with Arm on chip manufacturing compatibility
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Stephen Nellis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 12 (Reuters) - Intel Corp (INTC.O) on Wednesday said its chip contract manufacturing division will work with U.K.-based chip designer Arm Ltd to ensure that mobile phone chips and other products that use Arm's technology can be made in Intel's factories. Intel's turnaround strategy hinges in part on opening up its factories to other chip companies, particularly those in mobile phones. It has said firms such as Qualcomm Inc (QCOM.O) are planning to use its factories for future chip designs. For its part, Arm, owned by Japanese technology investor SoftBank Group Corp (9984.T) and which plans to go public later this year, is a major supplier of intellectual property to many chip companies, especially in mobile phones. Arm has partnerships with major chip contract manufacturers in place to ensure that its designs will work well on their manufacturing processes.

TAIPEI, April 12 (Reuters) - Taiwan's TSMC (2330.TW) has not changed the investment plan for its new chip factory in the island's southern city of Kaohsiung, Economy Minister Wang Mei-hua said on Wednesday, responding to a media report of the chipmaker slowing down expansion at home. "TSMC making Taiwan its global R&D hub and manufacturing hub has not changed," Wang told reporters on the sidelines of parliament. "TSMC investing in Taiwan, investing in Kaohsiung, also has not changed." Wang's comments come after Taiwan's DigiTimes publication reported, citing sources, that TSMC is slowing down its expansion plans in Kaohsiung and other Taiwanese cities. In 2021, TSMC said the Kaohsiung expansion would also include advanced 7-nanometer chips, but the company later postponed plans to build the advanced chips there.

☆ Morgan Stanley says this chip giant will be a long-term tech leader — and gives it 30% upside
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Zavier Ong | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The South Korean chip maker also said it will cut memory chip production amid slowing global growth, dwindling demand and oversupply. TSMC When it comes to TSMC, Morgan Stanley is staying bullish despite expectations of near-term pressure on the stock. In the near term, we also expect TSMC's 2Q23 revenue guidance to be weaker than expected," Morgan Stanley's analysts, led by Charlie Chan, wrote in a note on Apr. 20, the bank's base case scenario will see the chip giant guiding for a longer-than-expected inventory correction. Tim Seymour, founder and chief investment officer of Seymour Asset Management, believes the dip in TSMC's share price is a buying opportunity .

☆ Buffett says geopolitics a factor in Berkshire sale of TSMC stake
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 11 (Reuters) - Warren Buffett called geopolitical tensions "a consideration" in Berkshire Hathaway Inc's (BRKa.N) decision to sell most of its stake in Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC (2330.TW) just a few months after buying it, Nikkei reported on Tuesday. Berkshire had bought more than $4.1 billion of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co's shares between July and September 2022, but in February said it had sold 86% of its stake by year-end. The size of the investment suggested that Buffett, rather than one of his Berkshire portfolio managers, had bought the shares for Berkshire, and the sale was unexpected given the billionaire's preference to invest for the long-term. In an interview with Nikkei, Buffett described TSMC as a well-managed company, but said Berkshire had better places to deploy capital. Buffett was in Japan to meet with five Japanese trading houses in which Berkshire invests.

☆ TSMC talking to US about CHIPS Act 'guidance' amid subsidy concerns
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TAIPEI, April 10 (Reuters) - Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC (2330.TW) said on Monday it is communicating with Washington about its "guidance" for a law designed to boost U.S. semiconductor manufacturing that has sparked concerns about subsidy criteria. "We can confirm that we are communicating with the U.S. government about the CHIPS ACT guidance," TSMC, the world's leading contract chipmaker, said in a short emailed statement. Taiwan Economy Minister Wang Mei-hua told reporters on Monday that TSMC was specifically talking to the United States about the details of the subsidies. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd (TSMC) is investing $40 billion in a new plant in the western U.S. state of Arizona, supporting Washington's plans for more chip-making at home. The subsidies would come from a $52 billion pool of research and manufacturing funds earmarked under the CHIPS Act.

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