A TALE OF TWO TECHNOLOGY WARS: SEMICONDUCTORS AND CLEAN ENERGY - Otaviano Canuto (Policy Brief)

 Otaviano Canuto - Center for Macroeconomics and Development

Policy Brief:
A TALE OF TWO TECHNOLOGY WARS: SEMICONDUCTORS AND CLEAN ENERGY
Otaviano Canuto
November 3, 2023

The global economic environment has changed as the U.S.—and to a less confrontational degree, the European Union—have clearly established a context of technological rivalry with China. Hindering China’s progress in the sophistication of semiconductor production has become a centerpiece of current U.S. foreign policy. While the U.S. is clearly winning the semiconductor war, the picture is different when it comes to clean-energy technology.

Both technology wars overlap with access to and refinement of critical raw materials (CRM), which are key upstream components of the corresponding value chains, encompassing mineral-rich emerging markets and developing economies. The way in which the U.S. and the European Union approach the goal of self-sufficiency, as well as access to and refinement of CRMs, will make a big difference to their stakes in the technology wars.

Introduction
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Concluding remarks
The global economy currently faces risks of fragmentation, with national security among the reasons for national policies of ‘de-risking’ of supply chains, or ‘decoupling’ with China (Canuto, 2023). Such an environment encompasses technological wars as ‘proxy wars’, with sectoral landscapes differing, e.g. with respect to semiconductors and clean energy. The ways the U.S. and the European Union approach the goal of self-sufficiency, as well as access to and refinement of critical raw materials, will make a big difference for their stake in the technology wars.
https://www.cmacrodev.com/a-tale-of-two-technology-wars-semiconductors-and-clean-energy/