US tariffs may cost chip equipment makers more than $1 billion, industry estimates

Written by Max A. Indicate

Toronto (Reuters) – Two sources familiar with the matter said.

The sources said that each of the three largest makers of US chips – applied materials, Lam Research and KLA – may suffer from a loss of approximately $ 350 million throughout the year related to tariffs. Smaller competitors, such as innovation, may face tens of millions of dollars in additional spending.

The potential cost of one billion dollars in the manufacture of chip equipment and conversations is reported between the executives of the industry and US officials over several days about these costs for the first time.

Companies build some of the world’s most chips equipment that can require thousands of specialized parts.

Detamentary equipment makers have already lost billions of dollars after former US president Joe Biden implemented a series of export controls aimed at reducing the shipment of advanced semiconductors to Chinese entities.

The Trump administration has largely suspended the mutual definitions it announced in April. But to stimulate more manufacturing in the United States, it weighs more duties to the chips industry and began investigating their imports on Monday.

The estimated costs discussed last week in Washington include lost revenue, primarily for sales of less developed equipment for competitors abroad, and the costs of finding alternative suppliers for the complex components of chips and use tools. The estimate also includes the costs of compliance with customs tariffs, such as adding employees to deal with the complexities of the rules.

Legislators and administration officials discussed the costs of customs tariffs with executives and officials in the Semi chips, an international commercial group, as part of an ongoing dialogue.

The application of the comment request did not respond. He refused both and the comment.

The harsh harsh estimates of $ 350 million for each company can change the Trump administration’s duties. It is difficult to perform rapid mathematical processes because each tool for the chips industry has multiple ingredients, and the final tariff system is unclear.

The Biden Administration has taken the crackdown on China for three years to discredit its ability to produce advanced chips used in artificial intelligence, military applications, or other ways that can threaten US national security.

American export controls motivated China to invest in the manufacture of local chip equipment.

(Participated in the reports of Max A. Charney in Toronto; edited by Peter Henderson and Richard Chang)