03/03/2025

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US pushes Canada, Mexico to match its tariffs on China

Intel slows US$28b chip factory project in Ohio SAN FRANCISCO: Struggling US chip maker Intel pushed out the timeline for completing two new fabrication plants in Ohio, saying it is taking a prudent approach to the US$28 billion (RM125 billion) project. Chip production originally slated to begin in 2025 at Intel’s first new “fab” in decades is now expected to start in 2030, Intel said in a statement. “It’s important that we align the start of production of our fabs with the needs of our business and broader market demand,” Intel Foundry Manufacturing general manager Naga Chandrasekaran said in a message to employees shared by the company. “We will continue construction at a slower pace, while maintaining the flexibility to accelerate work and the start of operations if customer demand warrants.” For the full year 2024, Intel recorded a net loss of US$18.8 billion as the US chip giant continues to struggle to stake its place in the artificial intelligence revolution. Intel is one of Silicon Valley’s most iconic companies, but its fortunes have been eclipsed by Asian powerhouses TSMC and Samsung, which dominate the made-to-order semiconductor business. The company was also caught by surprise with the emergence of Nvidia, a graphics chip maker, as the world’s preeminent AI chip provider. Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger was forced out in December after the board lost confidence in his plans to turn the company around. In Europe, Intel late last year said it was delaying its plans to build two mega chip-making factories in Germany and Poland as the company faces lower demand than anticipated. Intel also said at the time that it would pull back on its projects in Malaysia. – AFP HK’s CKI exploring bid for UK’s Viridor LONDON: CK Infrastructure Holdings is considering a bid for KKR-backed British waste management firm Viridor, Bloomberg News reported on Saturday. The Hong Kong-based company is in talks with potential advisers as it evaluates a possible offer, the report said, citing people with knowledge of the matter. Last month, Bloomberg reported that KKR is exploring options for Viridor including a sale that could value the business at as much as £7 billion (RM39 billion) including debt. Viridor declined to comment on the Bloomberg report. CK Infrastructure and KKR did not immediately respond to requests from Reuters for comment. A representative for CKI did not immediately respond to Bloomberg queries and KKR declined to comment to Bloomberg, the agency said. Viridor operates energy recovery through its facilities in the UK to generate energy from residual waste, according to their website. – Reuters

Trump cited insufficient progress in reducing fentanyl overdose deaths in the US for the planned duties on more than US$900 billion worth of annual imports from Canada and Mexico. Mexico on Thursday staged its largest mass extradition of suspected drug cartel members in 10 years, including a 1980s kingpin who spent decades in prison for the murder of a US drug enforcement agent and 28 other suspects. Rafael Caro Quintero, 72, pleaded not guilty on Friday in federal court in New York on US drug trafficking charges that could result in his execution. The other extradited suspects included younger leaders accused of moving fentanyl into the US. Mexico’s Deputy Economy Minister Vidal Llerenas said on Thursday that Mexico could adopt other trade measures beyond the recent tariffs it imposed on certain imports to reduce low-value shipments from China. The Tuesday tariff deadline for China coincides with the start of its annual parliamentary meetings on Wednesday, a prime event on Beijing’s political calendar, where leaders are expected to unveil their main economic priorities for 2025. The American president’s announcement leaves Beijing with less than a week to publish countermeasures, as the Trump administration shows signs of a hardening stance towards its strategic rival despite backing down on the threat of 60% tariffs when the Republican took office on Jan 20. – Reuters

o Treasury chief envisions ‘Fortress North America’ guarding against flood of Chinese goods

WASHINGTON: US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent encouraged Canada to follow Mexico in matching US tariffs on Chinese goods as the two American neighbours sought to avoid punishing 25% tariffs due tomorrow over fentanyl trafficking. Canadian and Mexican officials have fanned out across Washington seeking to show President Donald Trump’s administration that they were making progress in securing their US borders to curb the flow of the dangerous opioid. Bessent, speaking in a Bloomberg Television interview, said Mexico had proposed matching the US tariffs aimed at China, but he did not specify which level. Trump on Feb 4 imposed a 10% duty on all Chinese imports, then said on Thursday he would double that to 20% from tomorrow. “I think it would be a nice gesture if the Canadians did it also – so in a way, we could have Fortress North America from the flood of Chinese imports that’s coming out of the most unbalanced economy in the history of modern times,” Bessent said. China’s embassy in Washington said Trump’s unilateral tariff hikes would severely violate World Trade Organisation rules and hurt both Chinese and US interests. “Pressuring, coercion and threat is not the

right way to deal with China. Instead, mutual respect is the basic prerequisite,” embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu said in a statement to Reuters. The Mexican and Canadian governments did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Bessent’s remarks. Canadian Public Safety Minister David McGuinty said at the end of a four-day visit to Washington that he continued to communicate with Trump administration officials that Canada was acting swiftly to secure its borders. “We’ve made some very serious adjustments, investments, improvements on the border, and we spent the entire week for four days of meetings, communicating those results, communicating those improvements to our counterparts here in Washington,” McGuinty told reporters after meeting with Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and border czar Tom Homan. Mexican Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard said he had a “cordial working meeting” with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. In a post on X, Ebrard said America and Mexico “have a great future working together” but offered no details on discussions over the US tariff deadline.

The flags of Mexico, the United States and Canada fly in the Mexican city of Ciudad Juarez. – REUTERSPIC

Adani Group revives plans for investments in America, says FT MUMBAI: India’s Adani Group has revived plans for major infrastructure investments in the US, where the group’s founder has been charged with bribery, the Financial Times reported yesterday. and chairman Gautam Adani. Federal prosecutors in New York unsealed an indictment in November accusing Gautam Adani of bribing Indian officials to persuade them to buy electricity produced by Adani Green Energy . seek “all possible legal recourse”. It did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on the FT report. projects, creating a potential 15,000 jobs.

Sagar Adani over allegations of securities fraud and a US$265 million bribery scheme. In 2023 the conglomerate was accused by US-based short-seller Hindenburg Research, which disbanded earlier this year, of improper use of offshore tax havens and stock manipulation that sparked a US$150 billion rout in shares of the group’s companies. Adani denied those allegations. – Reuters

Trump has vowed to make it easier for energy companies to drill on federal land and build pipelines. “Once Trump came in, we have reactivated some plans,” the FT reported, citing another source it did not name. The US Securities and Exchange Commission asked Indian authorities last month for help in its investigation of Gautam Adani and his nephew

The group had previously been in talks with US companies on potential partnerships and had looked at petrochemical investments in Texas, the newspaper said. After Trump’s November election win, Gautam Adani said the group planned to invest US$10 billion in US energy security and infrastructure

Since the election of President Donald Trump, the conglomerate has reactivated potential plans to fund projects in sectors such as nuclear power and utilities, as well as an East Coast port, the report said, citing four people close to founder

“We know what we want to do, but we will wait until this (case) resolves,” the FT quoted a person close to Adani as saying. Adani Group has said the charges were “baseless” and that it would