- For quite a long time, Singapore has been a favourite business destination for many countries due to its smooth and hassle-free taxation policies
- By the end of 2018, the manufacturers in Singapore were able to produce S$139.6 billion worth of computer and electronic parts
GlobalFoundries, one of the major semiconductor manufacturing companies in the US has proclaimed back in June to spend $4 billion to expand its semiconductor making factory in Singapore. The primary intention is not just about some cents and dollars and profits on the investment, but it is to diversify international supply chains as geopolitical tensions between China and the US has been on scuffle in the past one year.
The company thinks that its new chipmaking facility would be ready for operation in the first half of 2023 coupled with regulatory environment, favourable tax policy, and a team of efficient and talented workers. For quite a long time, Singapore has been a favourite business destination for many countries due to its smooth and hassle-free taxation policies.
Thomas Caulfield, CEO of GlobalFoundries has told exclusively to the Bloomberg, “around 70 percent of all foundry manufacturing takes place in Taiwan, a couple of hundred miles away from China, from one company. It’s put a huge risk to the world economy.”
Caulfield further opined that not only China, but in fact, the global semiconductor manufacturing for long has been dominated by Taiwan with companies TSMC has been a key provider of chipset to Apple and other leading global brands. During that time, Singapore was also a favoured destination for chipset making, but due to some flaws in policies it could not compete the race.
It is then Chartered Semiconductor commenced operating in 1987 backed by ST Engineering, which was funded by wealth fund company Temasek Holdings. Chartered Semiconductor assisted Singapore to become an international manufacturing center for semiconductors and computer components and by the end of 2000, the country manufactured $84 billion worth of computer, electronic, and optical products, including semiconductors.
In 2009, Charted Semiconductor was sold off to Abu Dhabi’s Advanced Technology Investment for $1.8 billion, which is the parent of GlobalFioundries. By the end of 2018, the manufacturers in Singapore were able to produce S$139.6 billion worth of computer and electronic parts, and by 2020 the sector accounted for 46.3 percent of total manufacturing output. Therefore, global experts opine that the country could beat Taiwan and China in semiconductor and electronic manufacturing in the coming few years.
