Title: Why the World Is Short of Semiconductors, and Why It Matters - Bloomberg
Headings: Why the World Is Short of Computer Chips, and Why It Matters
What you need to know:
QuickTake
Why the World Is Short of Computer Chips, and Why It Matters
In this article
WATCH: Why is there a global shortage of computer chips?
1. Why are there shortages?
2. Who is affected?
Semiconductor Risk
Weight of car manufacturing as a proportion of GDP
3. What is a chip?
4. Why is it so hard to compete?
5. Who are the big manufacturers?
Crisis Mode
The global auto industry may lose $61 billion of sales this year from chip shortages
6. How’s the competition going?
7. What about outside Asia?
8. Where’s the technology headed?
9. How does Taiwan fit into all this?
The Reference Shelf

Content: All of these phenomena and more had a similar cause: an abrupt and cascading shortage of semiconductors. Also known as integrated circuits or more commonly just chips, they may be the tiniest yet most exacting product ever manufactured on a global scale. The cost and difficulty in producing them has fostered a worldwide dependence on two Asian powerhouses — Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. and South Korea’s Samsung Electronics Co. — a reliance brought into stark relief in 2020 when the Covid-19 pandemic and rising U.S.-China tensions made chips scarce. Hundreds of billions of dollars will be spent in coming years in a global race to expand production, with geopolitical as well as economic implications. WATCH: Why is there a global shortage of computer chips? Source: Quicktake
1. Why are there shortages?