Missing computer chips Short-time work at VW and Daimler

Status: 16.06.2021 10:23 a.m.

Time and again, the production lines in car plants stand still – the manufacturers refer to the industry-wide shortage of chips. Now it hits Volkswagen and Daimler again. When will the situation improve? From Angela Göpfert, tagesschau.de There will be stoppages in the coming week at the VW main plant. In the Tiguan, Touran and Tarraco production as well as in the Golf production in the late and night shifts, the Wolfsburg switch to short-time work. In the Daimler plants in Bremen and Rastatt, short-time work is already the order of the day. The reason is once again the industry-wide shortage of chips.

06/08/2021

Interruptions cost billions

It is nowhere near the first time that the shortage of semiconductors has slowed automakers’ production. It was not until the end of May that the VW luxury subsidiary Audi at the Ingolstadt and Neckarsulm locations suffered production interruptions. BMW had been hit a few weeks earlier. The Ford plant in Cologne is also affected. The German auto industry is not alone with its problems: The US auto giant Ford calculates charges of around 2.5 billion dollars this year due to the lack of chips. The problems in the automotive industry have consequences for the entire economy. Just today, the researchers at the Munich Ifo Institute lowered their forecast for the growth of the German gross domestic product this year from 3.7 to 3.3 percent. To justify this, they also referred to bottlenecks in the delivery of intermediate products such as semiconductors.

Improvement in the third quarter?

It could take a few more weeks for a change for the better. According to experts, the automotive industry is heading for the lowest point. “We are facing the toughest six weeks,” said Murat Aksel, VW Board Member for Purchasing, recently in an interview with the “Handelsblatt”. The situation should improve again in the third quarter. Competitor Daimler also expects an improvement in the second half of the year. The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) also estimates that the situation should ease from July.

Around four million cars less

Because of the lack of chips, automakers worldwide produced 1.4 million fewer cars in the first quarter and 1.6 million in the second quarter, the BCG experts calculate. For the entire year 2021, the failures are likely to amount to four to six million vehicles.

05/04/2021

The consulting firm Alix Partners in Munich estimates 3.9 million cars. This corresponds to a value of non-produced cars of around 91 billion euros.

Lessons from the shortage of chips

The car manufacturers have long since learned their lessons from the shortage of chips: They are carefully reviewing their supply chains and are not only expanding their warehousing for chips. After all, the supply chains have thinned out after a pandemic for more than a year, even for important intermediate products, for example in the chemical industry.

06/07/2021

Security of supply is suddenly a priority again after years of just-in-time delivery. Chip manufacturers are also taking strong countermeasures and are pushing ahead with expanding their capacities at full speed. In Germany, the new high-tech chip factory from Bosch ensure regional supplies.

Misjudgments as the cause

But how did it come to that? Where does this lack of chips come from, which is currently keeping the auto industry and its employees in suspense? With the outbreak of the corona pandemic, demand for cars collapsed and chip manufacturers cut their production plans.

05/31/2021

When the demand for new vehicles suddenly increased surprisingly in the summer of 2020, chip manufacturers such as Infineon or NXP were overwhelmed by the demand. The current chip shortage is therefore based on a whole series of misjudgments – on the part of car manufacturers and suppliers, but also on the part of chip manufacturers. The lack of chips also shows that the auto industry did not come through the Corona crisis as badly as feared.

“In previous years, my husband and I often bought the whole garden, from when the lychee was still green until harvest, we would sell it to traders. Now the lychee is in the right season for the outbreak, so my husband and I decided to switch to drying and selling dry cloth. Because it was too urgent, I didn’t have time to make a drying oven, so after I harvested fresh lychees, I rented them to dry them and then sell them on my personal page as well as online market groups,” Thuy said. The price of dried fabric is halved compared to every year Ms. Thuy said that the drying time for a batch of fabric ranges from 5 to 6 days, depending on the drying process of each kiln owner. A satisfactory batch of dried lychee is that the lychee fruit must have uniform color, sharp sweetness, flexibility and a very characteristic aroma. Due to the impact of the epidemic, the price of dried lychee this year is much lower than every year. According to Ms. Thuy, in previous years, the average price of dried lychee was from 120,000-150,000 VND/kg, this year the price fluctuates around 60,000 VND/kg. This price is for Thuy and her husband to make it public on their sales page. She and her husband only do wholesale, not retail, with a minimum order of 10kg. Customers taking in large quantities, from 50kg or more, I will reduce the price a little more. “Because I have been selling for nearly 15 years, the number of regular customers is very large. There are customers who order immediately at 2-3 quintals, on average I output about 4 quintals a day. In less than a week, I sold 1.5 tons of dried lychees,” she said. Thuy and her husband only wholesale dried cloth for customers who buy 10kg or more “Actually, this year, I switched to selling dried lychees like this and didn’t make much profit. However, due to the Covid-19 epidemic, I want to join hands so that litchi growers don’t suffer much damage.” The woman shared that if the dried fabric meets the standards, it can be preserved for a whole year. Dried lychee can be used to eat directly, soak in alcohol or use to cook tea, as a spice for traditional Chinese medicine. How to choose a drying cloth In the market, there are many establishments that sell dried fabrics, but to choose quality dried fabrics, it is necessary to pay attention to buy them at reputable addresses. The dried fruit must be large, the outer skin is dry evenly, keep its shape or slightly dented. Dried fabric can be kept for a long time Especially when peeling, the lychee must be flexible, have a characteristic aroma, sweet taste, peel off without sticking to your hands, and have a dark color of cockroach wings. Long litchi with black color means it has been burnt, while long with light brown color means that it has not been dried enough, must be used immediately and cannot be stored for a long time. Methods of preservation In order to preserve the dried fabric for a long time, when we buy the fabric, we dry it under 2 or 3 times in the sun. During the drying process, pay attention to turning the fabric to the sun, and the fabric to dry evenly. Then put it in the shade to dry in the wind for another 3, 4 days, then put it in a tightly tied plastic bag. When storing, about 2-3 months, you should open the cloth bag to check the probability of a few fruits to see if the dried fabric is still of good quality or has been moldy, damaged or opaque. If you store a lot, every few months, you should take the fabric out to dry in the sun and follow the exact same preservation process for the first time, thus ensuring that the dried fabric can be kept delicious and nutritious for years to come.

Reading Global (2021.05.24) Chip shortage spreads to Taiwan’s IT industry Recently, Taiwanese companies that are responsible for the production of a large number of global digital products such as personal computers and smartphones have shown signs of slowing performance growth. The already obvious shortage of semiconductors and other parts in the automotive industry has also spread to the IT industry, production has stalled, and about 80% of major companies’ sales in April were lower than in March. In the context of the expansion of the new crown epidemic, there is a strong demand for laptops used at home. Taiwan’s largest PC foundry company Compal Computer’s sales for January-March 2021 increased by 48% year-on-year. However, sales in April fell by 5% year-on-year. Industry stakeholders pointed out, “In response to rapidly expanding demand, we have tried every means to maintain global supply since the spring of 2020. However, there is a shortage of parts and components, and the production of personal computers and smartphones has begun to stagnate.” As of January-March, there has been a shortage of components such as semiconductors, but the performance of Taiwanese companies has continued to improve. However, by April, related companies in Taiwan, whose sales also decreased, increased rapidly, and the “digital economy” showed signs of change. Nihon Keizai Shimbun analyzed the sales of 19 well-known listed companies in Taiwan whose main customers are Apple and other companies. The number of companies in April was lower than March. Judging from the growth rate of the total sales of 19 companies (approximately 4.5 trillion yen), in April it increased by 18% year-on-year, still maintaining a double-digit growth, but compared with the 20-50% growth rate in the last five months Lower level. Among the 19 companies, the decrease in sales reached 6, which is also a major symbol. Pegatron, which ranks second in the iPhone production field in the world, cut its revenue by 10%, and Largan, the world’s largest manufacturer of mobile phone optical lenses, also dropped by 27%. The future performance of Taiwanese companies will stall, which may have a huge impact on the global digital climate. For example, the production of Apple’s iPhone is entirely undertaken by Taiwanese companies. 90% of servers worldwide are also produced by Taiwanese companies such as Hon Hai Precision Industry, personal computers account for more than 80%, and semiconductors account for more than 60%. If the production of Taiwanese companies that are fully involved from parts to finished products stagnates, they will not be able to supply products to the world, which will inevitably affect the digital economy. In addition, the epidemic in Taiwan has rebounded, and the future impact on production is also worrying. A small number of young people in the U.S. develop myocarditis after being vaccinated with the new crown vaccine Lianhe Zaobao reported on the 24th that a small number of young people or adolescents in the United States developed myocarditis after being vaccinated with the new crown vaccine. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is investigating this issue. So far, there is no clear correlation between the two. Agence France-Presse reported that the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention pointed out that there are currently “relatively few” reports of myocarditis in young people after being vaccinated with Pfizer-BioNTech or Modena, which uses messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) technology. It is mild and may not be related to the new crown vaccine. It is known that the vaccinators who have this situation are mainly young or adolescents. They develop symptoms four days after receiving the second dose of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine or Modena vaccine, and more men have symptoms than women. The CDC added that in its safety monitoring system, there is no difference between the reported rate of myocarditis after vaccination with the new crown vaccine and the expected baseline rate. The CDC did not release detailed information on the number of people with myocarditis or their specific age. The United Kingdom will initiate an assessment of tariffs on imports from the United States. The steel and aluminum trade dispute between the two sides continues The United Kingdom said on the 24th that it has initiated an assessment of tariffs on imported goods from the United States and responded to the dispute between the two sides on steel and aluminum trade. Previously, the Trump administration imposed tariffs of 25% and 10% on imported steel and aluminum products, prompting the European Union to take retaliatory measures, which the UK has retained after Brexit this year. “The UK will do everything possible to protect our steel industry from unlawful tariffs, which may damage British industry and harm our business,” Liz Truss, the British Secretary of State for International Trade, said in a statement. Said it wanted to cool the controversy. (This article is compiled from Nihon Keizai Shimbun, Lianhe Zaobao, Reuters) Compiled by Zhou Yuqing, an intern reporter of Economic Observation Network

Crisis in the training market Where the trainees are most absent

Status: 08.06.2021 2:09 p.m.

Much fewer apprenticeships, far fewer applicants – Corona has massively thinned the training market. What alarms experts: Professions in which there is already a shortage of skilled workers are severely affected. From Philipp Reichert, SWR Since the beginning of the corona pandemic, significantly fewer training positions have been offered than before. This is shown by figures from the Federal Employment Agency SWR has evaluated. According to this, companies across Germany reported only around 430,000 apprenticeship positions from October 2020 to the end of April, i.e. after more than half of the current application year. That is around 60,000 fewer than in the same period of 2018/2019, i.e. before the pandemic. This means that by the end of April, around every eighth training position in the country was no longer offered. The number of applicants also fell significantly in the same period: from around 418,000 to 345,000 – a decrease of around 18 percent.

The healthcare and hospitality industries are particularly hard hit

Accordingly, there were particularly strong slumps in the tourism industry and in the hotel and restaurant sector. By the end of April, an average of every third apprenticeship position was no longer offered compared to 2019. But also in large occupational groups in the craft, for example in food production, the metal industry and in some technical professions, thousands fewer training positions were reported. The SWR -Data analysis shows that all federal states are affected by the development – albeit to different degrees.

Young people feel insecure

The Federal Employment Agency attributes the decline in training places and applicants primarily to the Corona crisis. “This mainly reflects the pandemic restrictions and the associated economic uncertainties,” it says SWR -Inquiry. Young people are also unsettled because personal consultations were more difficult in the pandemic and, for example, training fairs were canceled. “We also suspect that some of the young people are withdrawing from the dual training market in the current situation and switching from the outset to alternatives such as further schooling or possibly studying,” says the Federal Employment Agency. In addition to the corona crisis, changes in the labor market, for example in the automotive and supplier industry, as well as demographic change have contributed to the development.

Can the gap still be closed?

For labor market experts like Stefan Sell from the Koblenz University of Applied Sciences, the development is alarming. “These are extremely strong slumps, they are extraordinarily high.” Sell ​​therefore fears long-term consequences if fewer young people start an apprenticeship in the fall of the new training year. “Losses of this magnitude could never be made up again.” Past crises would have shown that. “Unfortunately, we have to expect that the level of apprenticeships will remain significantly lower overall than before the Corona crisis,” said Sell. From the labor market expert Sell’s point of view, it is particularly problematic that such occupational groups are also affected in which companies already need an above-average long time to fill vacancies. According to calculations by the Institute for Employment Research, for example, companies in the field of mechatronics and in some technical and health professions are looking for skilled workers for a particularly long time. “Even before Corona, we did not train enough in these professions,” says Sell.

Criticism of “small funding programs” by the government

The SWR data analysis shows: It is precisely in these occupational groups that there are now also significant drops in the number of applicants. At least one in ten applicants broke away there compared to the time before Corona. Labor market expert Sell sees the significant drop in applicants in the professions with a shortage of skilled workers extremely critical. “In some of these areas, such as the health professions, we will run into significant shortages,” said Sell. The responsible Federal Ministry of Education divided up SWR request with, you take the decline in the training market very seriously. That is why a program to secure training positions was decided last summer, which for example provides training and employment bonuses as well as grants for training and trainer remuneration. 700 million euros are earmarked for this and the coming year. Sell, however, criticizes that the program is insufficient to cushion the decline in the training market. “This is a small funding program, one should have set clearer signals.” The program was also too late and too complicated for companies.

Illustration (Source: Chinadaily) South Korea’s Ministry of Science and Information Technology and Communications said on June 1 that many cloud data center operators have cooperated with companies specializing in chips used in Korean servers to meet the respond to the increase in demand for semiconductor products and respond to uncertainties in the global supply chain. The ministry said five data center companies, Naver Cloud, Douzone Bizon, Kakao Enterprise, NHN and KT, along with the Artificial Intelligence Industry Cluster Agency, signed a memorandum of understanding with Korean server chip companies SK Telecom, Rebellions, FuriosaAI, and Korea Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute to expand the use of products Semiconductor domestically produced artificial intelligence (AI) in data centers. Demand for AI semiconductor products from data center operators has been increasing in recent times. These companies need chips to process large volumes of data efficiently. Ministry of Science and Technology Information – Korean media predicts that the global server AI chip market will grow from $3.5 billion in 2020 to $34.7 billion in 2030. Under the aforementioned agreement, the companies will also cooperate on chip development, as well as pursue plans to establish a semiconductor test environment at an AI industry complex in Gwangju, 329 kilometers south of Seoul. The ministry said it would support the cooperation plan of the company and hope that this agreement will boost the semiconductor industry of Korea in the context of a recent global supply shortage.

Illustration. https://tinhtexaydung.petrotimes.vn According to GasBuddy, about 30% of all retail gas stations in North Carolina, South Carolina and George are out of gas. Virginia and Tennessee are also experiencing significant blackouts. Colonial Pipeline’s main pipeline transporting gasoline and diesel to the US East Coast has been shut down, following a ransomware attack earlier this month. More than a thousand fuel stations in the Southeast have run out of petrol and diesel due to panic buying and pipeline closures. Even people in Texas, in the Rio Grande Valley, are flocking to gas stations to fill up with fuel, when news of gas stations running out of fuel. Colonial Pipeline paid almost $5 million in ransom in the form of a cryptocurrency to the hackers. But 2 weeks after shutting down, some gas stations are still shutting down. In Georgia, according to AAA data, the average price of a gallon of regular retail gasoline was $2,944 as of May 20, up from $2,708 a month before the pipeline failure. In North Carolina, the average price for gasoline is $2,929 per gallon, compared with $2,627 a month ago. According to Reuters, U.S. gasoline consumption is nearing pre-pandemic levels and is now down just 4% in the four weeks since May 14 from the five-year pre-pandemic average. https://tinhtexaydung.petrotimes.vn

The global chip shortage could last until 2023. (Source: Nikkei) Came in by surprise The Covid-19 pandemic was the first to cause the global economy to fall into recession last year, disrupting supply chains and changing consumer shopping patterns. So, to cope with the pandemic, automakers are forced to cut chip orders in 2020, while chip manufacturing companies also reduce production activities. But the rapid recovery and mis-predictions of car buyer demand have caused automakers to rush to place orders in large quantities. Meanwhile, the supply of semiconductor chips is not enough. In addition, the US government’s sanctions on Chinese technology corporations, plus consumers who bought many laptops, game consoles and other electronic products during the pandemic led to Inventory is getting smaller and smaller. Although computer chips are not very complicated or expensive, they are an integral part of making electronic devices and household items. Shortages are getting worse, spreading from the car industry to the consumer electronics market. Estimates by the US-based Semiconductor Industry Association say about 75% of global manufacturing capacity is in East Asia, led by TSMC (Taiwan) and Samsung (Korea). U.S. semiconductor companies account for 47 percent of global chip sales, but only 12 percent of global output is produced here. The shortfall is due to Asian companies investing too little in 8-inch chip factories. These companies have struggled to ramp up production as demand for 5G phones and laptops grew faster than expected. Qualcomm Inc, Samsung’s smartphone chip maker, is one of the major chipmakers struggling to keep up with consumer demand. Apple’s main supplier Foxconn also warned about the lack of chips affecting the supply chain for customers. Widespread impact The chip crisis hit the car industry first, especially on the productivity and sales of big companies like General Motors, Ford and Volkswagen. According to market research firm IHS Markit, the shortage of electronic chips affected the production process of 1.3 million cars and trucks worldwide in the first quarter of 2021. The company’s report also shows that the Renesas chip plant fire in Japan in March, as well as disruption to chip factories due to severe winter weather in Texas, will cause shortages. becomes serious. Last month, the British mini-car maker said it had suspended production lines for three days because of chip shortages. Recently, Ford also warned that the number of products is at risk of falling to 1.1 million vehicles this year. At the end of last year, the impact of the chip shortage crisis spread to consumer electronics. Last month, Apple’s financials indicated that the company would suffer losses of between three and four billion dollars in the first two quarters of the year, with the biggest impact on Mac and iPad products. Recently, Chinese technology giant Xiaomi increased the prices of some TV models, citing the fact that the price of key components increased higher than before. Meanwhile, two electronics groups Samsung of Korea and Sony of Japan also simultaneously increased product prices. In addition, the crisis has begun to affect China’s home appliance manufacturing sector. The world’s largest maker of home appliances, Midea Group, said the price of chips used to make home appliances would soar if the global chip shortage persists. The biggest impact from the chip crisis is still consumers. While demand for consumer electronics and automotive items tends to be quite price-sensitive, a reduced supply can increase the price of affected items by 1-3%. This could temporarily boost inflation later this year. Chip pressure has pushed up car prices in the US. New prices averaged $37,200 in the first quarter, up 8.4% year-over-year. Meanwhile, production disruptions due to chip shortages will continue. CEO of chip maker Infineon (Germany) Reinhard Ploss estimated that it will take about two years for chip supply and demand to be balanced. THIUY VUY (according to SCMP/Reuters)

TSMC will increase semiconductor chips for cars by 60% this year To do this, TSMC has to reallocate semiconductor chip production capacity to other industries that are also experiencing “stressfully high demand due to the acceleration of digital transformation”. The Taiwanese semiconductor chip maker said: “With fixed short-term capacity, TSMC has been trying to increase production in 2021 for microcontrollers (MCUs), one of the key components in the products sold in China. leading cars by 60% compared to the level in 2020”. This represents a 30% increase from pre-pandemic levels in 2019. TSMC will also continue to work with the automotive supply chain to address the current shortage. Modernizing supply chain management and increasing demand forecasting will be the way to avoid such shortages in the future, TSMC added. The global semiconductor chip shortage, which began last year, has forced some auto production lines to close and is also affecting consumer electronics. TSMC has repeatedly said it is doing its best to address shortages and ramp up production. US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said on May 20 that she had held meetings with 30 senior industry leaders about the semiconductor chip shortage and said the US could help. increase transparency in the market. This meeting was attended by major automakers such as General Motors, Ford Motor, Stellantis NV, semiconductor chip suppliers and other semiconductor companies. Phan Van Hoa (according to Reuters)

Sony will continue to struggle with PlayStation 5 supply in the coming years. Sony’s financial results report for fiscal year 2020 shows that Sony has sold 7.8 million PlayStation 5 units by the end of March 31, and Sony’s target is 14.8 million units in fiscal year 2021. If this goal is achieved, Sony hopes to catch up with PlayStation 4 sales with 115.9 million units to date. Sony CFO Hiroki Totoki said demand will drop this year, and even if Sony secures more devices and makes more PlayStation 5s next year, supply won’t be able to keep pace with demand of customer. In addition, since its release in November 2020, PlayStation 5 has also been difficult to find in stock due to shortages of components such as semiconductors and Sony has not yet released an official estimate of the expected time. supply will return to normal. However, Sony still believes that demand for consoles is not only driven by the Covid-19 pandemic, when people are forced to stay at home and want devices for entertainment that consumers still need. high demand for Sony products. As for the limited PlayStation 5 console, the PlayStation 4 remains the best consumer alternative. In addition to Sony, according to Bloomberg, rival Nintendo Co. also warned last week that component shortages could affect production. The company has set a sales target of 25.5 million consoles for the year ending March 2022. However, Nintendo’s management is said to be trying to produce and market between 28 million and 29 million consoles this year.

Today, chips are in everything from PlayStation 5s and toothbrushes to washing machines and alarm clocks, and chip shortages have led some to call the current crisis “chipageddon” — chip shortages computers globally. Glenn O’Donnell, vice president of research at consulting firm Forrester, believes chip shortages could last until 2023. “As demand will remain high and supply will remain constrained, we anticipate this shortfall to last through 2022 and into 2023,” he wrote on a blog. O’Donnell expects PC demand to “slightly drop” next year, but “not much.” “Combine that with the desire to digitize everything with the continued growth in cloud computing and crypto mining, and we see nothing but a short burst of chip demand,” O. ‘ said Donnell. Meanwhile, Patrick Armstrong, CEO of Plurimi Investment Managers, said last week that the chip shortage will last 18 months. “It’s not just cars. That’s the phone. It is the internet of things (IoT). There are more chip-based gadgets now than ever before. All of them are internet enabled.” The car industry has been affected by the global chip shortage more than any other sector. The world’s largest chipmaker, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) said earlier this month that it thinks its production will be able to catch up with auto demand by June. , Armstrong believed it was an ambitious plan. “Ford, BMW, Volkswagen all emphasized that there were capacity bottlenecks and they couldn’t get the chips needed to make the new cars,” O’Donell said. In a separate development, global research and consulting firm Gartner said last week that chip shortages will persist through 2021 and that the shortage affects all chip types and chip prices. growing. Gartner analyst Alan Priestley said the situation could improve for some sectors over the next six months, but there could be a “side effect” in 2022. In March, Intel announced plans to spend $20 billion on two new chip factories in Arizona. Intel also said it could build a factory in Europe if funding is arranged. “Those plans will take two or three years before we start to see that. But that’s really looking forward to meeting future demand,” said analyst Priestley. Wenzhe Zhao, director of global economics and strategy at Credit Suisse said in a note last week that recent chip shortages have encouraged inventory hoarding along the chip production chain, widening the gap. between expanding demand and stagnant supply. Mr. Zhao said that new semiconductor production capacity will not take place until 2022 or later, and the problem of solving the current shortage besides adjusting the order book, production schedule and price is very difficult.

Product of the 4th generation V-NAND memory chip of Samsung Electronics. Photo: Yonhap/VNA Specifically, Samsung – the world’s largest memory chip manufacturer and Hyundai – South Korea’s leading automobile manufacturing group have signed a cooperation agreement with the Institute of Automotive Technology and the Institute of Electronic Technology under the Ministry of Trade and Industry. Korea Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) to strengthen cooperation in the automotive chip manufacturing industry. Details of the contract between Samsung and Hyundai were not disclosed. However, an unnamed government official said: “We do not rule out the possibility that Hyundai will receive automotive chips from Samsung.” South Korea boasts a world leader in memory chip production, but is relatively weak in the logic chip business. According to data from the Korea International Trade Association, the country accounts for only 2.3% of the automotive chip manufacturing market. Leading in this field are the US (31.4%), Japan (22.4%), and Germany (17.7%) respectively. Major Korean chipmakers such as Samsung and SK hynix Inc. focuses on manufacturing high-performance memory semiconductors because automotive chips are seen as less profitable, while requiring complex testing processes and strict quality requirements. Korean automakers are being hit hard by a global shortage of automotive chips, especially electronic control chips in cars, leading to production halts. output many times. The move comes as the Korean government aims to establish an automotive chip supply chain to solve the global shortage of semiconductors. The government plans to roll out tax incentives and subsidies worth a total of 510 trillion won ($453 billion) to semiconductor companies between now and 2030. The Korean government hopes that the agreement between Samsung and Hyundai can strengthen the country’s autonomy in the field of automotive chip production and enhance Korea’s competitiveness in the production of world cars. next generation in the future. While chipmakers will be at the forefront of research and development of core semiconductor technology, auto manufacturers will focus on providing platforms for testing new automotive chips and components. related department.

Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger (Pat Gelsinger) said that the global chip supply shortage may continue for two more years. Kissinger said that the supply constraints will continue until more production capacity goes online to meet chip demand. Data center business is challenged Data center business has become the main source of bad earnings this time. Intel’s financial report shows that the data center group’s revenue in the first quarter was US$5.6 billion, a 20% decrease from US$7 billion in the same period last year. The decline in demand for cloud computing chips and the decline in government and enterprise demand caused by the epidemic have all triggered a decline in data center revenue . As the group’s highest profitability business, the decline in data center profits also dragged down the overall gross profit margin, which fell by 5 percentage points year-on-year to 55.2%. From the industry perspective, Intel is undergoing a transformation from a “PC center” to a “data center”. But in the era when data has become the “new oil”, it is not only Intel that sees the cake of data centers, but Nvidia and AMD are trying to further seize this market through mergers and acquisitions. On the other hand, Intel’s customers in the data center field, Google, Amazon, and Alibaba, have all begun to develop their own chips. “Any customized chip is a differentiated competition for them. For them, the chip is a strategy, not a route choice.” Vice President of Intel Marketing Group and General Manager of China Industry Solutions Department Liang Yali responded to this earlier. On April 8, Intel launched the third-generation Xeon scalable processor and a series of related product portfolios, which were regarded by the outside world as a counterattack to AMD’s attack. Among them, Ice Lake is Intel’s first server chip using 10nm. In addition, in the financial report data, Intel’s personal computer chip business revenue was 10.6 billion US dollars, an increase of 8% over the same period last year. The overall demand for this major notebook computer market has increased. However, it is also worth noting that the past high-end product line cooperation On the other hand, Apple has also begun to use more self-developed chips in the Mac product line. In the entire Intel’s quarterly report, the biggest bright spot is that the autonomous driving system company Mobileye’s revenue rose by 48% year-on-year to 377 million US dollars, and its operating profit rose by 67% year-on-year. “Lack of core” trend will continue At present, the shortage of chips has gradually spread from some links such as foundry, packaging and testing to the entire industry chain, involving multiple consumer fields such as automobiles, mobile phones, and notebooks. As one of the main players in the chip supply chain, Intel claims that the global chip supply shortage may continue for two more years. Prior to this, in order to reverse Intel’s decline in competition in the semiconductor industry, Kissinger proposed the IDM 2.0 plan. In the financial report statement, Kissinger also stated that this year will be an “important year” for Intel. From an industry perspective, Intel represents the IDM (Integrated Device Manufacture) model. The manufacturer is responsible for the entire process of the chip from design to finished product. This model can ensure the integration of the product from design to manufacturing. But in terms of iteration efficiency and cost, the Foundry model represented by TSMC is currently more mainstream. In order to change the current foundry pattern based on TSMC, Intel plans to invest approximately US$20 billion in the construction of two new factories (fabs) in Arizona, the United States. Intel stated that it hopes to become a major provider of foundry production capacity and provide services to customers around the world from the United States and Europe. Research organization TrendForce said that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) will begin using the 5nm process to produce Intel’s Core i3 chips in the second half of this year. But judging from the latest news, Intel seems to want to increase its manufacturing capacity centered on the United States in order to reduce its dependence on Asian manufacturers. For Intel at the moment, the biggest problem is that the expansion investment plan may take several years to provide profits for it. In the financial report, Intel expects Q2 revenue of US$17.8 billion, slightly higher than the expected US$17.55 billion; however, the EPS forecast of US$1.05 is slightly lower than expected, and the company explained that it was affected by production capacity expansion expenses. As of press time, Intel reported $62.57 per share. It placed an order of 1.77% on Thursday and dropped 2.17% after the market.

The semiconductor shortage is due to the growing demand for technology products as consumers globally continue to work from home. This makes the need to own a computer essential for home work applications as well as the need for the latest game consoles (such as Sony’s PlayStation 5) and hardware. The semiconductor shortage not only disrupted production but even affected vehicle design and production, Peugeot announced it would stop installing the digital instrument cluster on the 308 instead. use analog clock. The decommissioning will affect both Land Rover and Jaguar models as the XE, XF and F-Type are all produced at the Castle Bromwich plant. Along with that, both the Land Rover Discovery Sport and the Range Rover Evoque currently produced at the Halewood factory will be discontinued. Land Rover’s Solihull plant will continue to produce normally, while its other factories in Slovakia, Brazil and China will continue unaffected. “Like the other manufacturers, we are currently experiencing some supply chain disruption of Covid-19. This includes the globally available supply, which is currently in effect,” said JLR spokesperson. our production schedule and our ability to meet global demand for some models We are working closely with the affected suppliers to solve problems and minimize effects on customer orders if possible “./.

The shortage of chips is the biggest challenge that this business is facing, Griffiths said. Volkswagen logo at a dealership of this company in Hamm, Germany. (Photo: AFP / VNA) Seat’s Martorell factory, located on the outskirts of Barcelona, ​​only makes models that receive chips from suppliers, Griffiths said. Volkswagen expects chip supplies to remain tight in the coming months. Last month, Volkswagen Chief Executive Officer Herbert Diess said it was unable to produce 100,000 cars due to a shortage of chips and it would be difficult to make up for the shortage in 2021. According to Volkswagen, the shortage of chips is exacerbated by a snowstorm in Texas (USA), and major chip manufacturers based in the region have to stop production or reduce production. Therefore, this company cannot rule out the possibility of further adjustments to production activities.

Volkswagen logo at a dealership of this company in Hamm, Germany. Photo: AFP / VNA In an interview with the Financial Times, Mr. Wayne Griffiths, President of Seat brand in Spain, Volkswagen said he had received notification from suppliers as well as from Volkswagen Group about the significant challenges in the second quarter. could be even more difficult than the first quarter. Mr. Griffiths said that the shortage of chips is the biggest challenge that this business is facing. Seat’s Martorell factory, located on the outskirts of Barcelona, ​​only makes models that have received chips from suppliers, Griffiths said. Volkswagen expects chip supplies to remain tight in the coming months. Last month, Volkswagen CEO Herbert Diess said the company was unable to produce 100,000 vehicles due to chip shortages and it would be difficult to make up for the shortage in 2021. According to Volkswagen, the shortage of chips is exacerbated by a snowstorm in Texas (USA), and major chip manufacturers based in the region have to stop production or reduce production. Therefore, the firm cannot rule out the possibility of having to make further adjustments to production activities.

We all know that the beauty of Zhejiang has been famous since ancient times, and this has been mentioned in the writings of many poets. In recent years, Zhejiang’s tourism industry has earned a lot of income, and its share of GDP has also continued to rise. Of course, the ticket income of major scenic spots cannot be underestimated. As we all know, generally speaking, the more well-known scenic spots, the more tourists come to visit, and the more expensive the tickets. Especially like those national and world-class well-known scenic spots, one or two hundred tickets are commonplace. However, today the editor will share with you the good news that Zhejiang has a beautiful scenery and a rich cultural scene, and has won the “Top Ten Ecological Leisure Tourism Cities in the Country”. There are more than 100 scenic spots in the country for free 242 days a year. It is open to tourists, and not only national 4A and 5A scenic spots, but some are even included in the World Heritage List. This “most individualized” city is Quzhou, Zhejiang. Quzhou is a prefecture-level city in Zhejiang Province. It is located at the junction of Fujian, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, and Anhui. It is a national historical and cultural city with a long history, beautiful scenery and rich humanities. It has been 1,800 since the establishment of Q County in the first three years of the Eastern Han Dynasty. With many years of history of building the city, it is known as “the thoroughfare of four provinces and the head of five roads”. Quzhou has beautiful ecological landscapes, rich cultural relics, and rich tourism resources. It is a famous tourist city in my country. Xu Xiake, a great traveler in the Ming Dynasty, seems to have a preference for it. He has traveled many times since then, of which Jianglang Mountain alone has set foot three times. . Jianglang Mountain is the first World Heritage Site in Zhejiang Province and the first World Natural Heritage Site in the Yangtze River Delta. As a typical Danxia landform landscape in my country, it has always been known for its strangeness, danger and god. The strange rocks and caves in the mountains, waterfalls and springs, clouds and mists, and rays of sunshine are known as “the majestic crown of the world and the beauty of the southeast”. Not only that, Quzhou also has a well-known city brand at home and abroad-“South Confucian Holy Land Quzhou Youli”. Every year there will be a ceremony to worship Confucius in Quzhou. At that time, many guests and people from all over the world will gather together. A public sacrifice to Confucius. Quzhou is the residence and second hometown of the descendants of the saint Confucius. It is also the center of the spread of Confucianism in Jiangnan. In 1129 AD, Kong Duanyou, the 48th generation of Confucius’ eldest grandson, led his tribe to settle down here. The existing Confucian Nanzong Family Temple in Quzhou City is one of only two Confucian Family Temples in the country. In addition, Quzhou also has the Longyou Grottoes, known as the “Ninth Wonder of the World”. It is the largest ancient underground man-made building in the world discovered by mankind so far, and with regard to its precise construction age, builder and purpose, It is still an unsolved mystery. Of course, there are many well-known scenic spots such as Nianbadu, Root Palace Buddha Country, Lanke Mountain, Minju Garden, Xianxia Pass, Qianjiangyuan, etc., who have participated in this “Global Free Tour to Quzhou” activity. If you are already moved, Then don’t miss it.

Mr. Lai Hong Thanh, Deputy Director General of the General Department of Geology and Minerals (Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment) Representative of state management agency on minerals, Mr. Lai Hong Thanh, Deputy Director of General Department of Geology and Minerals (MONRE) shared with SGGP Newspaper reporter about the management of exploration and mineral exploitation across the country today. * Reporter: Sir, the scarcity of leveling materials for the North-South expressway project is no longer a new problem. Government leaders, many ministries, branches and localities also joined in, but the situation has not improved much. What do you think? – Mr. LAI HONG THANH: As a key national project, which has been prepared and implemented since 2017, the North-South expressway project has received special attention from the National Assembly, the Government and relevant agencies. favorable conditions for deployment. However, in some sections of the route, the locality is facing difficulties with materials for construction. It is estimated that the total demand for the whole route will need about 60.7 million m³ of embankment land; 21.5 million m³ of rocks of all kinds and 10.8 million m³ of sand. In the process of project formulation, technical design, design consultant surveyed and proposed to use material mines. Some mines in many localities are being implemented well, but there are also a number of mines that have not met the demand for many reasons: the transportation distance is too far, leading to high cost, not timely supply; Some mines have expired, are waiting for renewal … Besides, there are mines in the local planning that are implementing mining licensing procedures, but according to the current law, the process is , the procedure takes quite a long time. Before the North-South expressway project was implemented, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment issued Circular No. 01/2016 / TT-BTNMT technical regulations on the exploration of river-bed sand and gravel and rock for leveling materials. fill. This Circular simplifies the technical method and volume of exploration works, thereby shortening the time for licensing exploration and exploitation. Recently, the ministry has also issued Document No. 1488 / BTNMT-ĐCKS dated March 29, 2016 on licensing exploration and exploitation of minerals as common building materials for expressway projects. We have also instructed the provincial People’s Committee to apply the Mineral Law in the direction: construction works can take the excavated soil to convert to the embankment within the service scope of that work without having to apply for a permit. … * Some localities say that even after applying regulations to facilitate businesses, it is still too long to be licensed for exploration and mining? – Law on Minerals 2010 has been implemented for more than 10 years, there are points to be adjusted and the above mentioned case (exploration and exploitation of minerals as common building materials) is one of the points that need to be amended. . In the immediate future, I propose to the competent authority, here the National Assembly, to consider and issue a separate resolution following the simplified procedures on the order of procedures for exploration and exploitation of mines for the project. this. However, the implementation progress depends greatly on the locality, because the Provincial People’s Committee is the authority to approve and grant exploration and exploitation permits. * How about the possibility of using thermal power plant ash or using construction waste to build roads, sir? – In my opinion, it is necessary to evaluate the environmental impact of using ash and slag in thermal power plants. But even if it can be used, the amount of this offset is also negligible compared to the huge demand of the expressway project. * The 2010 Law on Minerals has brought into play a positive effect over the years, but the law has also revealed a number of shortcomings that need improvement. Can you elaborate on these shortcomings and is the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment expected to submit to the Government and the National Assembly for amendments to the law? – Currently, we are evaluating and summarizing the implementation of the Mineral Law 2010 and have identified a number of shortcomings. That is, do not specify the joint venture or association in mineral exploitation activities; there is no uniform regulation with the law on investment to control when there is a change in the capital of the enterprise owner that has been granted a license for mineral exploration and exploitation; responsibilities of organizations and individuals exploiting minerals after being licensed for exploitation in monitoring and supervising the actual exploited output; responsibility for coordinating mineral management in the areas bordering areas between provinces and cities (especially for sand minerals, river-bed gravel) … After a comprehensive assessment, we will take the next steps to submit to the authorities to include the amendment and supplement of the Mineral Law into the law building program, possibly 2022 or 2023. * Thank you Sir!

But in the case that mining has not gone away but has worsened, the graphics card freedom is not so easy.

At the investor meeting a few days ago,NVIDIA CFO Colette KressAlso responded to the issue of the lack of graphics cards,She pointed out that the problem of graphics card shortages will continue until the end of the year.

But out of stock will not limitNVIDIAPerformance growth,Colette KressMeansNVIDIAEfforts were made to increase supply, but no specific information was given.

FromGTC 2021Judging from the published roadmap,GPUThe architecture is2Upgrade once a year,2020Year isAmpere,2022A new generationGPU, Previously rumored to be codenamedHopper.

in other words,2021Year is thereRTX 40Series of graphics cards,RTX 30The series is still the main force of this year. After all, it doesn’t make much sense to push a new card when it is difficult for everyone to buy it.