WASHINTON / TAIWAN – The American Institute in Taiwan and the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States signed a historic trade deal that will drive a massive reshoring of America’s semiconductor sector. This unprecedented commitment will strengthen US economic resilience, create high-paying jobs, and bolster national security.
- The agreement establishes a strategic economic partnership between the United States and Taiwan to decisively strengthen US domestic semiconductor supply chains and secure America’s technological and industrial leadership.
- Direct Investments: Taiwanese semiconductor and technology enterprises will make new, direct investments totaling at least $250 billion to build and expand advanced semiconductor, energy, and artificial intelligence production and innovation capacity in the United States.
- Additional Investments: Taiwan will provide credit guarantees of at least $250 billion to facilitate additional investment by Taiwanese enterprises, supporting the establishment and expansion of the full semiconductor supply chain and ecosystem in the United States.
- Industrial Clusters: The United States and Taiwan will establish world-class industrial parks in the United States to strengthen America’s industrial infrastructure and position the United States as the global center for next-generation technology, advanced manufacturing, and innovation.
- Taiwan will facilitate US investment in the Taiwanese semiconductor, AI, defense technology, telecommunications, and biotechnology industries to expand market access for American companies, deepen technological collaboration, and strengthen US leadership in critical and emerging industries.
- The agreement will enhance balanced trade through a predictable tariff framework.
- The US reciprocal tariff rate applied to Taiwanese goods will total no more than 15 percent.
- The US Section 232 duties applied to Taiwanese auto parts, timber, lumber, and wood derivative products will total no more than 15 percent.
- The United States will apply a zero percent reciprocal tariff for generic pharmaceuticals, their generic ingredients, aircraft components, and unavailable natural resources.
- Future Section 232 duties applied to Taiwanese semiconductors will reward Taiwanese semiconductor producers that invest in the United States.
- Taiwanese companies building new US semiconductor capacity may import up to 2.5 times that planned capacity without paying Section 232 duties during the approved construction period, with a lower preferential Section 232 rate for above-quota imports.
- Taiwanese companies who have completed new chip production projects in the United States will still be able to import 1.5 times their new US production capacity without paying Section 232 duties.
Semiconductors are vital for America’s industrial, technological, and military strength. Yet, for far too long, the Washington establishment allowed this strategic sector to move offshore, leaving the United States dependent on foreign manufacturers and brittle global supply chains. The Trump administration is committed to reversing that trend.
- Semiconductors are the foundational components of modern technology. They power computing systems in products ranging from smartphones and automobiles to telecommunications equipment and military weapons.
- The US share of global wafer fabrication declined sharply from 37 percent in 1990 to less than 10 percent in 2024. Today, most semiconductors are fabricated in East Asia due to foreign industrial policies that distort global trade flows.
- President Trump’s Commerce Department is leading a whole-of-government effort to revitalise American semiconductor manufacturing.
