The lucah artis malaysiasemiconductor company VSMC, a joint venture between Dutch chip giant NXP and Taiwan’s Vanguard International Semiconductor (VIS), broke ground on its 300mm wafer fabrication plant in Singapore on Wednesday. To address the increasing tech tension between China and the US, the companies are discussing expanding their Singapore subsidiary to diversify chip production, said Andy Micallef, NXP’s Executive Vice President. NXP is seeking to expand its supply chain in China to serve companies that require a domestic Chinese supply chain, Micallef added. In 2023, the global automotive semiconductor market reached $69.2 billion, with NXP the sector’s second largest firm with around a 10% market share, behind German semiconductor manufacturer Infineon, according to market research platform TechInsights. [Guancha, in Chinese]