Japan’s Nikon has said a global reordering of the chip supply chain is buoying exports of its semiconductor equipment as it tries to pivot away from reliance on sales to China and the US.
The company, better known to consumers for its cameras and lenses, vies with ASML and Canon to sell lithography equipment. It has so far profited from selling less advanced machinery to China while its rivals’ more cutting-edge equipment has faced US-led export restrictions.
Nikon president Muneaki Tokunari told the Financial Times he expected the company to weather any downturn in its China business from an extension of restrictions, with geopolitical tensions pushing many countries to build their own chip supply chains and rely less on supplies from Taiwan, home to the main contract chipmaker TSMC.