The Trump administration’s Section 232 investigation into whether semiconductor imports threaten national security casts fresh light on America’s global semiconductor footprint. Semiconductor supply chains have shifted over the past decade, and recent trade moves are likely to send companies – and potentially investors – scrambling to adapt.
Read on for a breakdown of trade data that reveals where the U.S. stands — and where it’s vulnerable.
Editor’s note: Import and export values are based on HTS groups 85.41, except for solar products, and 85.42.
U.S. semiconductor imports and exports with every country
Overall, the United States recorded a $1.5 billion trade surplus semiconductors in 2025. It had a positive semiconductor trade balance with 143 countries and a negative balance with 47. The U.S. trade balance in semiconductors shrank from a $21 billion surplus in 2004 to a $2 billion deficit in 2016, but it has turned positive since then.
The largest export markets for semiconductors shipped from the U.S. by dollar value are Mexico ($13 billion), China ($11 billion), Malaysia ($8 billion), Taiwan ($8 billion), and South Korea ($2 billion).
Despite Malaysia, Taiwan, and South Korea being the among the largest recipients of U.S. semiconductors, the U.S. has a semiconductor trade deficit with those countries.
The countries that the U.S. imports the most semiconductors from are Taiwan ($14 billion), Malaysia ($12 billion), Israel ($5 billion), Indonesia ($3 billion), and South Korea ($2 billion).
U.S. semiconductor chip sales by major market
U.S.-headquartered semiconductor companies make the majority of their money through sales outside the United States and ship most of their chips outside the country as well, according to data collected by the Semiconductor Industry Association. In 2024, U.S.-headquartered chip companies earned 31% of their revenue through sales in the U.S. and sold 16% of their product in the U.S.
China accounted for 40% of sales volume from U.S.-headquartered semiconductor companies but just 29% of revenue, which suggests that American companies are largely exporting legacy chips to China due to U.S. export controls.
The charts above show U.S.-headquartered semiconductor companies’ revenue and sales volume by major market over time.
U.S. semiconductor trade with China
China has long been a major export market for semiconductors from the U.S., but volumes have fluctuated due to evolving U.S. export controls on chips.
Washington has been in constant debate over how restrictive its export controls on semiconductors should be toward China, with significant implications for U.S. chip companies.
Proponents of tight export restrictions argue that strict restrictions on China’s access to advanced U.S.-designed semiconductor chips are necessary for the U.S. to maintain an edge over China in the two countries' tech rivalry. Critics of export controls claim that restrictions encourage China to invest more in indigenous innovation, which will ultimately accelerate its efforts to build home-grown next-generation chips.
U.S. semiconductor trade with Malaysia
Malaysia is a hub for semiconductor packaging, assembly, and testing for less advanced chips. Leading American semiconductor manufacturers including Intel (INTC +0.30%) and GlobalFoundries (GFS +1.34%) have operations in Malaysia.
The United States held a trade surplus with Malaysia in semiconductors until 2011. Escalating trade tensions between the U.S. and China and U.S. export controls aimed at choking off China’s access to advanced semiconductors led chip companies to diversify their supply chains away from China, to Malaysia’s benefit.
U.S. semiconductor trade with Taiwan
Taiwan’s dominant position in global semiconductor trade is thanks to the success of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSM -0.60%), the world’s most advanced and valuable semiconductor manufacturer.
TSMC builds chips for most fabless semiconductor companies, including Nvidia (NVDA -4.43%), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD -1.71%), and Apple (AAPL -3.21%). The Taiwanese company has made several commercial breakthroughs that solidified its irreplaceable position in global semiconductor supply chains, including being the first to mass-market 7-nanometer and 5-nanometer chips.
Semiconductor production capacity by country and segment
China is the world’s leading producer of older-generation legacy semiconductors, sometimes referred to as mature-node chips, which typically measure 28 nm or larger. In 2023, China accounted for 33% of mature-node production capacity, up from 19% in 2015, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association. Production in Japan makes up 15% of legacy chip manufacturing capacity, down from 19% in 2015. The global share of U.S. mature-node semiconductor manufacturing capacity has declined from 14% in 2015 to 12% in 2023.
Mature-node semiconductors made up 80% of semiconductor shipment volume in 2023 and 40% of revenue, per the Semiconductor Industry Association.
The table below shows the market share and manufacturing capacity share of U.S. firms by mature-node semiconductor product segment and where U.S. companies source chips based on product segment and nanometer size.
U.S. firms dominate the analog chip segment, but domestic manufacturing diverges sharply from market share, which suggests a reliance on overseas fabs. A similar but less striking gap exists for discrete mature-node chips, which include individual electronic components, like diodes and transistors. More alignment exists between market share and domestic capacity for sensors, actuators, and logic chips.
U.S. companies are more likely to rely on Chinese semiconductor foundries for analog, discrete, and optoelectronic chips and those smaller than 90 nanometers, according to a 2024 survey from the U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security. Existing capacity and cost are the major factors companies cited for relying on China for chips in those categories.
Semiconductor export controls and tariffs: What investors should watch
Tariffs are one potential outcome of the Trump administration’s Section 232 investigation into the national security impact of semiconductor imports. Duties on semiconductors on top of a tightening chip export restrictions to China could shake up supply chains and influence how investors weigh semiconductor stocks.
Semiconductor trade data reveals:
- The U.S. holds a semiconductor trade surplus overall but relies heavily on imports from key Asian markets.
- Malaysia and Taiwan have grown as U.S. chip suppliers amid efforts to decouple from China.
- New tariffs or export controls could reshape global supply chains and deepen the U.S.–China tech divide.
Those factors show that America’s semiconductor strength – and the strength of the market sector – depends not just on exports but on a deeply interconnected global supply chain.
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security (2025). “Public Report on the Use of Mature-Node Semiconductors.”
- U.S. Census Bureau (2025). “USITC Dataweb.”
- Semiconductor Industry Association (2025). “SIA Comments to BIS on January 16 IFR.”
- Semiconductor Industry Association (2025). “SIA Comments to OMB on Resilience of Domestic Semiconductor Manufacturing through Federal Procurement of Commercial IT Products.”
- Semiconductor Industry Association (2025). “SIA Public Comments on USTR Unfair and Non-Reciprocal Trade Practices RFI.”
About the Author
