Japan to Open Two Chip Factories in US through Global Foundries and Abu Dhabi Money

[ABS News Service/15.10.2026]

· Japan will invest up to $21 billion in two chip factories in New York state that will be jointly owned by the US government and Japanese interests and operated by GlobalFoundries, the company said on Wednesday according to Reuters news service.

The move is part of a deal for Japan to invest $550 billion in the US struck by President Donald Trump's administration last year in return for the US lowering tariffs on Japanese cars and other imports from at least 25 percent to 15 percent.

The US will take a stake in the new chip factories, but Japan will provide all of the investment capital, GlobalFoundries said. The company, which is majority-owned by Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund Mubadala Investment Co, will earn fees from building and operating the factories, as well as licensing chip manufacturing technology to them. In a separate agreement, the US government will take a 4 percent stake in Global Foundries, bringing its total ownership of the chipmaker to about 7 percent, GlobalFoundries CEO Tim Breen told Reuters.

Japan has so far announced two batches of projects worth over $100 billion combined under the investment scheme.

· A record-setting surge in China’s exports dwarfed its imports in September, as the country’s vast manufacturing sector churned out cars, solar panels, electrical equipment and other goods for markets worldwide, the New York Times reported.

China’s General Administration of Customs said the country recorded a $133.5 billion trade surplus last month, the second-highest month ever. The latest figures put China on course to considerably exceed last year’s record $1.19 trillion trade surplus.

Another month of skyrocketing exports is expected to further stoke tensions with many trading partners, including in Europe, where anger over the flood of Chinese vehicles and other items is prompting some leaders to propose a so-called “kill switch” to shut out goods from China.

The customs agency said exports soared 36.3 percent in September from a year earlier. It was the largest year-on-year percentage gain in Chinese exports since July 2010, excluding months distorted by the timing of Lunar New Year.

Exports climbed to a record $447.2 billion. September’s trade surplus trailed only January 2025, when the timing of Lunar New Year prompted Chinese exporters to rush orders before the extended holiday.