A surge in Taiwan’s Covid-19 cases may worsen the global semiconductor shortage if the country implements economic shutdowns to stem the spread of the virus. In just the past two weeks, daily Covid-19 cases surged from less than ten to over 400. Actually, the current surge in Taiwan’s Covid-19 cases is nearly 20 times higher than the peak last year during the virus outbreak.
According to the article, Taiwan’s COVID-19 crisis could make global semiconductor shortage even worse:
The onset late last year of chip shortages that have hobbled industries from autos to computer gaming had looked to give Taipei global leverage. TSMC is the world’s leading provider of cutting-edge semiconductors and holds 56% of the so-called foundry business of manufacturing chips designed by customers, including Apple and Qualcomm.
But Taiwan has suffered a sudden reversal of fortunes. The pandemic comes just as a drought triggers power outages, stoking economic uncertainty and a slump in what was the world’s best performing stock index in the four years to January.
It seems that Taiwan Semiconductor (TSMC) produces a large percentage of cutting-edge semiconductors for Apple and Qualcomm. Furthermore, many of the semiconductors TSMC are made for the West and the United States. So, with Taiwan now facing a rise in Covid-19 cases, it could get much worse because only 1% of the population is vaccinated.
Thus, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Taiwan use semiconductors as LEVERAGE to get vaccines from the west, especially the United States. Here is the recent chart of Taiwan’s Covid-19 cases.
Let’s put aside the debate if Covid-19 is some grand conspiracy by the elite to control us, or a new form of first-stage Alien abduction, or any of the other dozen conspiracy theories. Let’s just focus on the surge in Covid cases and what the reaction will be by the government to keep it from spreading throughout the country, negatively impacting the vital semiconductor industry.
This is exactly the type of MONKEY WRENCH I’ve mentioned in my videos that will continue to be thrown into a high-leveraged global supply chain economy. So getting back to NORMAL will likely never happen. Already, Taiwan is dealing with a serious drought that has impacted its electricity generation and power for its industrial sector and domestic semiconductor market.
The world is running into problems not only due to the PEAK of CHEAP & EXPENSIVE OIL supply but also because we are running the Global Economic Engine at such a HIGH SPEED. Just think about running a car at 110 MPH for weeks on the interstate, only stopping for fuel. Running a vehicle at this high speed begins to STRESS the engine, tires, and many of the parts.
The Global Economy has been designed upon MAXIMUM PRODUCTION with no apparent consideration for BACKUPS or REDUNDANCIES, as mentioned by Taleb’s theory on ANTIFRAGILE. The global high-tech global economy and supply chain is the very OPPOSITE of Antifragile as it is extremely FRAGILE, and we are just beginning to experience the results.
I discuss this in my Gold Member video presentation shown below. If you would like to see it, click on the image below, but you will have to be a Gold Member.
So, I could really care less about the debate on Covid-19 because there will likely be much worse stuff coming down the pipeline. We must understand when humans raise food and live in a system that is highly leveraged, that is a breeding ground for PANDEMICS. And, then… add on top of a global economy running at 110 MPH, we have a recipe for a REAL MESS.
Lastly, I do not mean to be so pessimistic, but if we look at this information and these systems logically, we shouldn’t be surprised that we have set up our economy and markets for SERIOUS FAILURE. So, with central banks adding a massive amount of debt at the very time the global engine running at 110 MPH is screaming for a meltdown, it’s important to own physical gold and silver.
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It seems that the world is moving away from a globalized JIT supply chain to a more local supply chain. These Globalist Elites are really smart! Now we can’t even call them globalists because they will be pushing for more local stuff. Is this the birth of the New Localist Elites? I am eagerly awaiting the new crop of theories which will incorporate this change into the narrative. LOL
Although, on second thought, most of this flies right above the head of the Conspiracy Aficionados.
Enter the era of post-collapse, self-appointed oligarchs & regional despots.
The only way to stop cv-19 is to lower the cycles on the pcr machine. Maybe do what the Amish and Mennonites did and that would be living life without watching 4 hours of tv/propaganda everyday like the average person on this planet. Bc of that strategy they were not impacted at all by any of this nonsense. That being said, doesn’t it seem odd this “pandemic” shows up just when they need a scapegoat for thermodynamic oil collapse? They couldn’t hide this forever obviously and the public would never understand it. They would just freak out( bc it sounds scary and it is) and begin pulling money from the markets and banks.
The financial system collapsed again in September 2019. They shifted the entire collapse onto small to medium size businesses while their multinational companies stayed open. It was a transfer of energy no different than a lion eating a gazelle. The establishment deemed what was essential and non essential. The small family owned burger joint is closed while McDonald’s across the street is open. Simply a transfer of energy. Not to mention a grand solar minimum which will cause cold weather crop losses driving agriculture commodities higher in price. This is going to be a rough decade lol
I myself also finding it very interesting that a pandemic gets established right after the Repo Market collapsed in September 2019. I don’t like conspiracy theories but I also don’t believe in coincidences, especially on such a global scale as this. If you take an elite like Klaus Schwab for example, he is an economist and an engineer. He definitely understands the implications of the thermodynamics of oil depletion and all his actions and proposals are designed to transition his elite class to go through this upcoming mess and stay in power. This whole agenda from the World Economic Forum is a clever ruse and will not help the average person on this planet. “You will own nothing and you will be happy”… ummmmmm yea right LOL. I am very sure these people have studied the collapse of the Roman Empire and saw how many of the elites of the time got wiped out and cannibalized. They don’t want that to happen to them I can assure you that.
Jimmy,
While the timing of COVID and the Report Market madness may be suspect, in all honesty, it doesn’t matter. Actually, I doubt many of the Power Elite & Politicians truly understand the situation. Rather, they are focused more on keeping the LIGHTS ON and keeping the RICH… RICHER.
steve
Covid has to be BS. I have not seen one person dead in the street. However; lockdowns tend to cause supply shortages.
One question I have is just suppose that the vaccine is designed to kill or sterilize a person or population. Then what would happen to energy as our population decreases? We would have more of it to be sure, but would we have to worry about an energy shortage in our lifetime if this is the case?
Just food for thought. I can’t say for certain what the vaccine will do to people, but it seems a little strange that it is being pushed on children.
@Ninjagirl,
Vaccines could reduce the population.
How much energy it will save, it is difficult to imagine without knowing the long term effects in view of the completely delirious rate of vaccinated people. It works, they all throw themselves on the vaccine around us … to regain their freedom to travel for many, crazy! Some of them win their last trip, their grave.
https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2021/05/27/mass-vaccination-triggers-spike-covid-19-cases.aspx
Wasn’t that interesting “philduv”?
For those falling for or promoting the so-called depopulation agenda. Please, watch this and understand why it’s complete garbage: Limits of Industrial Civilization: How Our Thirst for Energy Devours the Planet (VIDEO)
The problem is not the number of people on the planet at all!
I enjoy your work TT, very informative.
An interesting few clips on POPULATION
https://overpopulationisamyth.com/
Yes, all the facts are kinda true on that website. But I find it amusing that even he misses the key element to our issues. LOL
Here are a couple of excerpts from the website. I highlighted the words hinting at the core issue which is never addressed anywhere on the website:
“Where has barren land been turned fertile?
In both countries (Brazil and Thailand), the government was able to help farmers overcome these obstacles. This was done through methods like better irrigation, adding nutrients and chemicals to make the soil more suitable for planting, and finding crops that would adapt well to the local environment.”
“Essentially, the only way that poverty has ever been defeated, anywhere, is by infrastructures that humans have set up. So, when poverty does exist, it is when these infrastructures either 1) don’t exist, like in underdeveloped nations, or 2) are broken or have holes in them. Essentially, fixing poverty is about fixing bad infrastructure, not about eliminating people.”
“The promise of better jobs, prestigious schools, modern healthcare, and high culture calls people to leave the countryside and move to the city.”
I also agree with him that modern civilization will collapse unto itself anyway… but he’s still not touching on the issue that’s right in front of his eyes.
“Why has the global total fertility rate dropped so much?
Many demographers think that it is because more and more people are urbanizing (moving into large cities). When families live out in the country on farms, it makes more economic sense to raise larger families, so that they have people to help them and care for them in their old age. It’s also true that cities tend to have better healthcare facilities, which reduce infant mortality. This in turn means that parents end up having fewer children, since more of their existing children are surviving to adulthood.”
“Society is made up of old people and young people. Old people didn’t start off old; they were once young: working, having families, and paying taxes. These young people gradually age until they are old and no longer able to work. When this happens, it is important for them to be fully replaced by a new generation of young people. These young people will in turn work, have families, and pay taxes, which go in part to supporting the elderly population which can no longer support itself.”
Perhaps Taiwan wants to ensure we all understand the implications of a mainland China takeover in terms of high tech chips. And it’s important to point out that our high tech military systems, which includes weapons, also rely on this source.
Came here for the comments…
Agree. I learn so much, and enjoy reading Steve & the Tactical guy very much. I also learn a lot from the comments, for sure, and enjoy reading them all. Steve has a very intelligent group of subscribers.
It seems unlikely that 440 cases of CV-19 would cause a heavy trading entity like Taiwan to mess with its success as a major manufacturer and supplier of computer chips. Taiwan has 24 million people, making 440 CV-19 cases not a “surge” but only a minor blip, unlike the experience of so many other countries. Since Taiwan is dependent on other countries for raw materials, such as obtaining the rare earth metals needed. Thanks for working so hard for us, Steve and TT!!
Robert