Source: Brokerage China
Author: Zhou Le
A recent nationwide economic survey by American media shows that due to widespread dissatisfaction with President Trump's handling of tariffs, inflation, and government spending, his approval rating on economic issues has hit a new low in his presidential career. Among them, 49% of respondents believe that the US economy will deteriorate in the coming year.
The "tariff storm" initiated by Trump may severely damage the USA's Semiconductor industry. Industry insiders say that based on estimates discussed last week by semiconductor industry executives, the International Semiconductor Equipment & Materials Association, and Washington officials, under Trump's new tariff measures, the three major semiconductor equipment suppliers in the USA will collectively lose over 1 billion dollars in a year.
Additionally, the USA's auto industry is facing significant shocks. According to recent news, major auto manufacturers Ford Motor and General Motors have had to raise prices in the USA market to cope with the impact of increased tariffs. Analysts warn that the price increases for Buick cars may threaten the survival of this brand.
Approval rating reaches a new low.
On April 20, according to the CCTV News app, on April 19 local time, the American Consumer News and Business Channel (CNBC) reported that CNBC's latest nationwide economic survey shows that due to widespread dissatisfaction with President Trump's handling of tariffs, inflation, and government spending, his approval rating on economic issues has reached a new low in his presidential career. Reportedly, 49% of respondents believe the US economy will deteriorate in the coming year.
The survey found that 44% of respondents approve of Trump's handling, while 51% express opposition. On economic issues, Trump's approval rating stands at 43%, with an opposition rate of 55%.
Jay Campbell, a partner at the Democratic polling firm Hart Associates, stated that Trump's original intention for re-election was to improve the economy, but so far, people are not satisfied with the results they are seeing.
The poll was conducted from April 9 to 13 with 1,000 Americans, with a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points.
While Trump's approval ratings on economic issues hit a new low, protests are occurring in many parts of the USA against the government's recent policies.
On April 19 local time, protests were held in multiple cities, including New York and Washington, D.C. The organizers of the protests stated that they are opposing the Trump administration's violations of civil rights and the Constitution, including the expulsion of a large number of immigrants, the firing of numerous government employees, and effectively shutting down multiple institutions to reduce the size of the federal government.
In addition, the protesters plan to hold events outside$Tesla (TSLA.US)$auto dealerships to protest against Musk and his role as head of the Department of Efficiency in streamlining federal agencies.
The USA's semiconductor industry has been severely impacted.
The "tariff storm" initiated by Trump is causing significant impacts on the USA's semiconductor industry.
According to industry insiders, based on the estimates discussed last week by semiconductor industry executives, SEMI (International Semiconductor Equipment & Materials Association) and Washington officials, under Trump's new tariff measures, the three major semiconductor equipment manufacturers in the USA—$Applied Materials (AMAT.US)$、 $Lam Research (LRCX.US)$ and$KLA Corp (KLAC.US)$will incur a loss of 0.35 billion dollars annually, totaling over 1 billion dollars in losses. Additionally, smaller chip equipment manufacturers may also face tens of millions of dollars in extra expenditures.
American chip equipment companies, including Applied Materials, hold a significant market share in the global chip equipment market. However, the chip equipment they produce may require thousands of specialized components—many of which rely on imports.
In addition to the equipment sector, US chip design companies have also suffered heavy losses, primarily due to.$NVIDIA (NVDA.US)$According to its previously released 8-K filing, NVIDIA recently received notice from the US government that exporting the H20 chip and chips reaching H20 memory bandwidth, interconnect bandwidth, etc., to countries and regions such as China requires obtaining a license. NVIDIA expects that in the first quarter performance, inventory, procurement commitments, and related reserve expenses related to the H20 products could reach approximately $5.5 billion.
US semiconductor giant. $Advanced Micro Devices (AMD.US)$ stated that, affected by the US government's expanded chip export restrictions, it may face financial impacts of up to $0.8 billion. According to the document submitted by Advanced Micro Devices to the US Securities and Exchange Commission, this impact mainly arises from its MI308 AI accelerator product being included in the export control scope.
The Lithography Equipment giant$ASML Holding (ASML.US)$The Chief Financial Officer, Dai Houjie, stated that the potential impacts of the Trump administration's tariff policies can be roughly divided into: tariffs on complete systems shipped to the USA; tariffs on parts and tools used on-site in the USA; materials involved in production processes in the USA that are imported to the USA and undergo further manufacturing will also be subject to tariffs; and tariffs imposed by other countries on commodities shipped from the USA (as applicable).
The American auto industry has suffered a significant impact.
The US government’s tariff policy has put traditional American auto manufacturers in a difficult position. According to foreign media reports, Ford and General Motors, the two major auto manufacturers, have had to raise prices in the US market to cope with the impacts of increased tariffs.
According to a report by CBS News on April 18,$Ford Motor (F.US)$The company stated that if the US government continues to impose tariffs on imported autos and auto parts, the prices of cars sold in the USA may begin to rise this summer.
The report cites a spokesperson for Ford Motor Company, who said price increases are expected to begin in July of this year, and the company has informed dealers about the price increase in a recent memorandum.
Reports cite analysts who point out that due to Auto Manufacturers' reliance on highly integrated Global supply chains, Auto Parts need to undergo multiple cross-border Transport before the vehicle assembly is completed. "Even vehicles produced by USA manufacturers rarely have a true 100% made in the USA tag."
Reuters reported on the 19th that the main models of Buick, a subsidiary brand of General Motors, also face price increases due to USA tariff policies. The report states that the three most popular models of Buick are not produced within the USA, and as the USA government's tariff policies take effect, these three models will face price hikes.
Forecasts show that investment Institutions have cut the profit forecast for Buick's parent company, General Motors, by 40% for 2025, predicting that the tariff will result in a $9.5 billion decrease in General Motors' pre-tax profits in 2025.
Analysts believe that price increases for Buick Autos may pose a threat to the survival of the brand. The authoritative automotive information service company Edmunds in the USA states that the government's tariff policy has severely impacted the dream of revitalizing this historically significant brand in the American automotive industry.
Editor/Rocky
