The US claims it just strongarmed Taiwan into spending $250 billion on American chip manufacturing

A photo of President Donald Trump

The US just lowered Taiwan’s tariffs in exchange for a massive domestic chipmaking promise, the Commerce Department announced on Thursday. Under the deal, tariffs on goods from Taiwan will decrease from 20 to 15 percent, while Taiwanese technology companies will invest $250 billion into building and expanding chipmaking facilities in the US, supported by at least $250 billion in credit offered by Taiwan’s government.

Last year, President Donald Trump threatened to impose a 100 percent tariff on chips and semiconductors not made in the US, something that Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick tells CNBC is still on the table. “That’s what they ge …

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