China Russia bonhomie ominous for India’s global chip making dream

As the US invests billions in local semiconductor manufacturing to end its dependence on China, the bonhomie between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin can be seen as an effort by Beijing to somehow negotiate on raw materials needed in semiconductor manufacturing.

Russia and Ukraine are major producers of two key materials used in semiconductor manufacturing – neon and palladium.

Ukraine represents about 70 to 80 per cent of the global supply of neon, while Russia produces about 35 to 45 per cent of the world’s palladium supply.