Facing economic headwinds and escalating trade tensions, China is refocusing on its tech sector, with President Xi Jinping recently convening a rare symposium with high-tech entrepreneurs. This move signals Beijing’s renewed commitment to technological innovation and industrial upgrades as key drivers of economic growth.

TSMC unveiled plans to nearly triple its investment in the United States to US$165 billion, a move that reshapes the global chip industry landscape amid surging artificial intelligence demand and intensifying US-China technological competition.

US President Donald Trump’s new 25% tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada, along with a doubling of duties on Chinese goods to 20%, took effect on Tuesday, sparking fresh trade tensions with the country’s top three trading partners. In response to the US fentanyl overdose crisis, President Trump escalated the 10% tariff on Chinese imports imposed in February, doubling it to 20%. The tariff measures were implemented at 12:01 a.m. EST (0501 GMT), just hours after Trump announced that the three nations had not done enough to halt the influx of the deadly fentanyl opioid and its precursor chemicals into the US.