UPDATE: Chip Cos Push For Tariff Bans On Complex Semiconductors
25 Mai 2012 - 10:42PM
Dow Jones News
Global semiconductor companies agreed to request tariff bans on
chips that pack many capabilities into one small package, something
that would help them better compete in the global marketplace.
Semiconductor chief executives and other representatives met in
upstate New York this week for their annual World Semiconductor
Council meeting. The group included representatives from various
U.S. companies such as Micron Technology Inc. (MU) and Analog
Devices Inc. (ADI), as well as companies from Europe, China,
Taiwan, Korea and Japan.
The organization gathers high-level executives once a year to
discuss trade policy, intellectual-property law and other
regulations that affect the industry. The companies seek to reach
agreements as a group that they then recommend to their respective
governments.
The biggest issue that the companies agreed on was seeking a ban
on import taxes for what the group dubbed "multicomponent chips."
As semiconductor technology becomes more advanced, chip designers
seek to include more functionality in one complete package, such as
processing, memory and sensing capabilities. That reduces cost and
typically makes it easier for customers to create their products.
Such chips are common in smartphones, tablets, PCs and other
consumer devices.
The topic was discussed at a roundtable late Thursday hosted by
the chief executives of Micron, Freescale Semiconductor Holdings I
Ltd. (FSL) and contract chip manufacturer Globalfoundries, along
with the chairman of Analog Devices and the president of the
Semiconductor Industry Association.
Freescale Chief Executive Rich Beyer said campaigns by the WSC
have helped eliminate most global tariffs on semiconductors, but
some nations impose steep taxes on the chips that combine many
functionalities in one package.
"Some of these tariffs are as much as 10%, which could eliminate
the ability of companies outside of those nations to successfully
compete," Beyer said.
While U.S. companies have pushed for the tariff removal for
years, the multicomponent chips have been viewed by some nations as
a threat, Beyer said. For example, some Chinese companies have
traditionally added value to the supply chain by integrating all
the separate chips together on a circuit board. Such actions aren't
always needed with the new chips. But the six regions were finally
able to agree the tariffs hurt companies more than they help,
executives said.
The companies also discussed encryption, seeking to ensure
specific nations don't force the industry to reveal what steps are
taken by customers to encrypt data.
"Our customers will develop encryption that will sometimes be
put into the chips," Beyer said. "Some nations around the world
would like insights into that."
Other issues discussed include regional stimulus and bailout
provisions, anticounterfeiting efforts, and greenhouse gas
emissions and chemicals management.
Micron Chief Executive Mark Durcan said some incentives to buoy
companies can be positive, but government action at the point of
company failure can "create significant disruptions and damage to
the industry as a whole."
"There's not a lot of consensus on how that should be
addressed," he said. Durcan said the group will discuss the topic
in future sessions, noting it took about seven years to reach
agreement about tariffs for chips that include many capabilities in
one package.
The WSC hosted the meeting near the site for a recently
constructed Globalfoundries chip factory in Malta, N.Y. The
factory, along with university efforts in semiconductor research,
has earned the region the moniker of "Tech Valley."
-By Shara Tibken, Dow Jones Newswires, 212-416-2189,
shara.tibken@dowjones.com
Analog Devices (NASDAQ:ADI)
Historical Stock Chart
Von Jun 2024 bis Jul 2024
Analog Devices (NASDAQ:ADI)
Historical Stock Chart
Von Jul 2023 bis Jul 2024