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Nov 9
China extends 24% US tariff suspension, but Section 301 threat clouds trade truce
China announced on November 9 that it would extend the suspension of an additional 24% tariff on US imports for another two months, while retaining the 10% additional tariff, following agreements reached during talks between Chinese and US leaders in Washington. The extension, announced by the State Council Tariff Commission, will take effect at 1:01pm on November 10, 2026, and is intended to maintain stability in bilateral trade relations.
Two leading server component manufacturers remain optimistic about AI demand despite potential short-term volatility following the US midterm elections. Chenbro Micom CEO Corona Chen said the elections would not derail AI's medium- to long-term development, while Advanced Energy Solution (AES) President Wei-Che Sung said customer demand would remain strong in 2027.
Google has expanded its eighth-generation TPU portfolio with the announcement of two specialized AI systems—the TPU 8tx for hardware-encrypted confidential compute and the TPU 8i Max for high-density context workloads. Joining the previously released TPU 8t training engine and TPU 8i reasoning engine, this update marks the first time Google has shipped four distinct TPU systems in a single year to serve its frontier research customers.
Column: Nvidia explores PTFE for AI servers amid PFAS concerns
Nov 10, 10:14
Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), the material behind the Teflon brand, has become one of the most closely watched materials for advanced electronics, drawing attention at the Open Compute Project (OCP) Global Summit and the Taiwan Printed Circuit Association (TPCA) International Exhibition.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's personal relationship controversy continues to widen, now spanning US national security, AI chip export controls, and corporate governance.
Taiwan's growth is expected to ease in 2027 as a surge in AI-related exports and business investment lifts this year's comparison base. However, continued spending on AI infrastructure should support trade and private investment, the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER) said.
Global smartphone revenue rose 3% year on year to US$114 billion in the third quarter of 2026, even as shipments fell 19%, highlighting a worldwide shift toward more expensive devices. Higher prices supported value, but rising memory costs are squeezing manufacturers' margins and threatening affordability, especially in entry-level markets worldwide.
Precision gearmaker KHGEARS International reported October 2026 consolidated revenue of NT$283 million (US$8.62 million), up 19.08% year on year and a monthly record. Revenue for the first 10 months totaled NT$2.732 billion, up 6.24% from a year earlier and a record for the period.
Topco reported consolidated revenue of NT$8.186 billion (approx. US$249.4 million) for October 2026, up 6.3% month-over-month and 61.2% year-over-year, setting a record high for monthly revenue. Consolidated revenue for the first 10 months of 2026 reached NT$71.215 billion, up 28.6% year-over-year and surpassing the NT$67.584 billion recorded for all of 2025.
Unmanned vehicle systems developer 7STARLAKE announced on November 6 that it will work with South Korean robotics company Raion Robotics and National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) to develop a physical AI and autonomous quadruped robot platform in Taiwan. The project will integrate multisensor data fusion, robot dynamics and terrain-contact simulations through virtual-physical closed-loop validation to strengthen local autonomy for unmanned vehicles.
Calls to curb artificial intelligence (AI) expansion have intensified after the US Democratic Party's sweeping victory in the midterm elections, but Trans-Sun Materials Technology Chairman Chia-Wang Li said political changes will not derail the AI growth trend. Regulatory measures under Democratic control could slightly delay some AI infrastructure projects, he said, but AI infrastructure remains an irreversible economic trend.
WinWay Technology, a semiconductor test-interface supplier, reported a slight decline in October revenue as holidays reduced shipping days and customer project adjustments affected deliveries. However, AI demand kept annual growth above 62%, while new projects involving AI, ASICs, GPUs, and CPUs are expected to offset seasonal weakness and support future operations.