Month: July 2022

The United States and Japan launched a new high-level economic dialogue Friday aimed at pushing back against China and countering the disruption caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The two longtime allies agreed to establish a new joint research center for next-generation semiconductors during the so-called economic "two-plus-two" ministerial meeting in Washington, Japanese Trade Minister Koichi Hagiuda said. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi and Hagiuda also discussed energy and food security, the officials said in a news briefing. "As the world's first- and third-largest economies, it is critical that we work together to defend the rules-based economic order, one in which all countries can participate, compete and prosper," Blinken told the opening session. Hagiuda said "Japan will quickly move…

The House on Thursday passed a $280 billion package to boost the semiconductor industry and scientific research in a bid to create more high-tech jobs in the United States and help it better compete with international rivals, namely China.  The House approved the bill by a solid margin of 243-187, sending the measure to President Joe Biden to be signed into law and providing the White House with a major domestic policy victory. Twenty-four Republicans voted for the legislation. The Senate passed the bill Wednesday, 64-33. "Today, the House passed a bill that will make cars cheaper, appliances cheaper and computers cheaper," Biden said. "It will lower the costs of everyday goods. And it will create high-paying manufacturing jobs across the country and strengthen U.S. leadership in the industries of the…

The U.S. Justice Department is investigating a cyber breach involving the federal court records management system, the department's top national security attorney told lawmakers Thursday. Matt Olsen, head of the Justice Department's National Security Division, alluded to the threat of cyberattacks by foreign nations as he told the U.S. House of Representative Judiciary Committee that the incident was a "significant concern." Olsen made the remarks in response to questions from Representative Jerrold Nadler, the panel's Democratic chairman, who said that "three hostile foreign actors" had attacked the courts' document filing system. Nadler said the committee learned only in March of the "startling breadth and scope" of the breach. Olsen said the Justice Department was working closely with the federal judiciary around the country to address the issue. “While I can’t…

 Twitter Inc. does not object to Elon Musk's proposal to start a trial on October 17 over Musk's bid to walk away from his $44 billion acquisition deal but the social media company wants a commitment to complete the trial in five days, Twitter said in a court filing on Wednesday.  Musk has said he needs time to complete a thorough investigation of what he says is Twitter's misrepresentation of fake accounts, which he said breached their deal terms.  He originally sought a February trial, but on Tuesday proposed an October 17 trial after a judge ruled the proceeding was to start in three months.  Twitter has called the fake accounts a distraction and pushed for the trial to hold Musk to the deal to start as soon as possible,…

Meta Platforms Inc. issued a gloomy forecast after recording its first ever quarterly drop in revenue Wednesday, with recession fears and competitive pressures weighing on its digital ads sales.  Shares of the Menlo Park, California-based company were down about 4.6% in extended trading.  The company said it expected third-quarter revenue to be in the range of $26 billion to $28.5 billion, which would be a second consecutive year-over-year drop. Analysts were expecting $30.52 billion, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.  Total revenue, which consists almost entirely of ad sales, fell 1% to $28.8 billion in the second quarter ended June 30, from $29.1 billion last year. The figure slightly missed Wall Street's projections of $28.9 billion, according to Refinitiv.  The company, which operates the world's largest social media platform, reported…

The U.S. Senate has passed a $280 billion initiative that would boost domestic production of microchips and provide support for a key industry that competes with overseas countries including China. VOA’s Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson reports. ...

The U.S. Senate voted 64-32 on Tuesday to advance legislation to dramatically boost U.S. semiconductor manufacturing in a bid to make the domestic industry more competitive with China. The legislation provides about $52 billion in government subsidies for U.S. semiconductor production as well as an investment tax credit for chip plants estimated to be worth $24 billion. The Senate is expected to vote on final passage in coming days and the U.S. House could follow suit as soon as later this week. President Joe Biden and others have cast the issue in national security terms, saying it is essential to ensure U.S. production of chips that are crucial to a wide range of consumer goods and military equipment. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo called the vote "a symbol of the strong…