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Taiwan’s GlobalWafers Prepares Phase Two Expansion at Texas Plant

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Taiwanese silicon wafer maker GlobalWafers is preparing for a second-phase expansion of its Texas manufacturing plant, pending customer commitments, chairperson Doris Hsu said on Wednesday.

The company opened a $3.5 billion facility in Texas last year and later announced plans to invest an additional $4 billion in the United States to meet rising demand. The site is GlobalWafers’ most advanced fully integrated 300mm silicon wafer plant and is currently the only advanced wafer manufacturing facility of its kind in the U.S.

Hsu said customers have begun asking about further capacity increases, noting that the first phase serves multiple clients and may not be sufficient. GlobalWafers is moving ahead with factory design work to shorten timelines once commitments are finalized.

GlobalWafers supplies TSMC, which is investing heavily in U.S. chip production. The expansion aligns with a recent U.S.-Taiwan trade deal aimed at strengthening local semiconductor supply chains.

Nvidia CEO Huang Plans China Visit to Reopen Market, Report Says

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Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang is planning a trip to China in late January as he looks to revive a key market for the company’s artificial intelligence chips, Bloomberg News reported, citing a person familiar with the matter.

According to the report, Huang is expected to attend company events ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays in February and may also visit Beijing. It remains unclear whether he will meet senior Chinese officials, and the plans could change depending on whether meetings are confirmed. Nvidia declined to comment, and Reuters could not independently verify the report.

The potential visit follows recent uncertainty over Nvidia’s ability to sell advanced AI chips in China. Last week, the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump formally approved sales of Nvidia’s H200 AI chips to China under certain conditions, raising expectations that shipments could resume. However, Chinese customs authorities said shortly afterward that the chips were not permitted to enter the country, casting doubt on near-term access.

China has been a crucial market for Nvidia, and the outcome of Huang’s planned visit could signal whether progress is possible amid ongoing geopolitical and regulatory tensions surrounding advanced semiconductor exports.

ASML Tops $500 Billion Market Value on TSMC Spending Boost

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Shares of ASML pushed the company’s market capitalisation past $500 billion for the first time on Thursday, after key customer TSMC announced a much larger-than-expected increase in capital spending to meet surging demand for AI chips.

TSMC said it plans to spend between $52 billion and $56 billion in 2026, well above analysts’ expectations of about $46 billion. The higher budget implies significantly more spending on advanced chipmaking tools, benefiting ASML, the world’s only supplier of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines.

ASML shares rose 5.4% by mid-day trading, extending their January gains to around 24% and cementing the company’s position as Europe’s most valuable listed firm. Analysts say ASML stands out as a major winner from the AI investment cycle, alongside memory chipmakers such as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix.

TSMC’s stepped-up investment also reflects strong demand from clients including Nvidia and Apple. While ASML has forecast only modest growth for 2026 due to the slow pace of new fab construction, analysts say TSMC’s plans improve visibility for stronger growth into 2027 and beyond.