Actions the U.S. and EU Can Take Together to Strengthen Both Regions’ Semiconductor Supply Chain Resilience
High-level government officials from Washington and Brussels are set to convene in Pittsburgh on Sept. 29 for the inaugural meeting of the U.S.-EU Trade and Technology Council (TTC), which aims to expand and deepen trade and transatlantic investment ties.
The TTC features 10 working groups set to address supply chain security, export controls, global trade challenges, and other issues. It will provide a critical venue for the two governments to coordinate and promote sound semiconductor policies that strengthen our collective supply chain resiliency and spur industry growth and innovation.
Semiconductors are the foundation of everything digital in the world today – from transportation to AI to 5G to quantum computing and beyond. The COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing global chip shortage have further highlighted how indispensable semiconductors are in today’s economy.
With deeply intertwined supply chains, the U.S. and EU semiconductor industries collaborate in a broad array of areas, including on relevant policy matters, research, and environmental initiatives. In fact, the U.S. and the EU combined represented 21% of the world’s semiconductor manufacturing capacity in 2020, and 43% of the world’s consumption of digital devices bristling with semiconductors in 2019. In 2020, the total two-way semiconductor trade between the U.S. and the EU totaled $4.8 billion. The U.S. and EU also share similar concerns about potential vulnerabilities and overdependence in the global semiconductor supply chain, particularly in parts of East Asia.
SIA has identified four specific areas the U.S. and EU can work together to strengthen the resilience of the semiconductor supply chain and promote innovation and trade.
