Trump claims TSMC will invest $300 billion in Arizona, pledges semiconductor tariff
President Trump has announced that iPhone processor supplier TSMC is to invest $300 billion in US manufacturing, and says a semiconductor tariff is imminent.
TSMC is reportedly investing more in US expansion
After Trump threatened higher tariffs on imports from India in time for the iPhone 17 launch, he has now been claiming the US will see greater foreign investment as well as the awaited semiconductor tariff announcements.
"You know, we have the biggest in the world, as you know, from Taiwan is coming over and spending $300 billion in Arizona," Trump said on CNBC's "Squawk Box," "building the biggest plant in the world for chips and semiconductors."
Trump wasn't clear and did not name TSMC directly, but it is based in Taiwan, and it is the largest processor manufacturer in the world. TSMC has reportedly declined to comment.
However, in March 2025, TSMC was reported to be committing to greater investment in the US. The stated amount then was $100 billion, though, and together with its previous investments, brings the total to $165 billion announced so far.
Trump did not say whether this claimed $300 billion is new investment, or includes the company's previous commitment.
Semiconductor tariff may be imminent
Trump was also not clear in his remarks about the forthcoming semiconductor tariff. This follows the ongoing national security investigation into semiconductor usage, which the White House started in April 2025 but immediately prejudged.
Ostensibly, if the probe discovered concerns that warranted a new tariff, they would be imposed. But the administration has said from day one that there will be a semiconductor tariff.
Now Trump says that this will be announced "within the next week or so." However, Trump tends to always say something will be in the next week or two, so it's still not clear when the actual announcement will be made.
In discussing it, though, he made a complicated comparison to "steel, aluminum, et cetera," and how these are all separate classes of something which therefore have separate tariffs.
"And within the next week or so, we're going to be announcing tariffs on, specifically, this is a, you know, this is a separate class and the 15% tariffs on sort of everything," he said. "These are excluded classes, I call them. I like to call them excluded like steel, aluminum, et cetera."
"Well, we're going to be announcing on semiconductors and chips, which is a separate category, because we want them made in the United States," he continued. "And by the way, they're being made in the United States."
Trump was not pressed for clarification on this point. But he most likely meant that semiconductor tariffs would be a different amount than the general 15% imposed on many countries.
A different tariff amount could of course be higher or lower than that 15%. However, the two categories he mentioned, steel and aluminum, face tariffs of 50%.
Even without any further tariff on semiconductors, Apple has said that by September 2025, it will have spent around $2 billion in total tariff costs.
Read on AppleInsider
Comments
Can’t someone just give him a golf trophy (or bribe) so he can just stop this nonsense? This administration is turning out to be the most business unfriendly administration in history (outside of the oil, coal and steel interests that most have bribed him).
He seems determined to crater the economy.
Turning out to be? Where have you been? This started in 2017 and hasn't stopped since. The roll was inconvenienced by Biden's intervention but machinations never stopped. Many corporations and businesses have benefitted tremendously at the expense of others, and mainly Trump's lack of business acumen.
People voted for this in spite of his known track record as a "business man" and morally bereft individual. There still 3.5 years to be endured. There are a crapton of people who won't see that they'll never get what he promised them and that by voting for him it's their fault.
He's not determined to crater the economy. He's pursuing personal agendas without any knowledge or regard of the economy which is cratering the economy. He absolutely won't tell the truth about the state of the economy.
What he has accomplished is making the US an authoritarian government, with no clue as to how the US should best interact with nations we want to trade with. The Art of the Deal. He want business moved back to the US and throws tariffs in their way and not incentives. What joke. Be careful what you wish for is the old saying.
Meanwhile, let's see the Epstein files.
Here's the NYT reporting that the U.S. has a "deal" with South Korea.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/30/business/economy/trump-tariffs-south-korea.html
And here's Reuters reporting two days later that South Korea says there is no "deal".
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/south-korea-says-it-has-no-written-pact-us-trade-deal-2025-08-01/