Big Taiwanese manufacturers are exploring the possibility of setting up second headquarters abroad to continue their operations in the event of an attack from China.
Source. The Financial Times reports this, citing market participants and sources familiar with the situation.
Raunia Kuo, head of the KPMG consulting corporation, told the FT that some of his clients are considering or already planning to open a second headquarters in Southeast Asia. According to him, such companies need a new headquarters to activate an alternative management system in the event of an emergency in Taiwan.
In particular, we are talking about Lite-On and Qisda, which produce electronic components and devices for consumer, telecommunications, automotive and medical applications.
The head of another consulting corporation, who did not give his name, said that "discussions about backup headquarters have begun in the management of the largest groups."
He added that many companies in Taiwan are now focusing on geographical diversification, and this will be followed by a series of changes, such as the creation of "contingency structures".
According to the source, he recommends that his clients "at least partially" set up a second headquarters abroad.
Singapore, Japan, Switzerland, and the Netherlands are among the countries considered by manufacturers to open headquarters. The United States is not on the list due to high taxes, although it is a large market for Taiwanese tech companies, the FT writes.
In January 2024, Bloomberg warned that a possible war over Taiwan could cost the global economy $10 trillion, which is 10% of global GDP. In the event of a military conflict on the island, the world will suffer the greatest losses due to the lack of semiconductors: the sectors that use chips account for 5.6% of total value added (almost $6 trillion). Factories that produce computers, smartphones and other products with state-of-the-art chips will simply shut down, and the automotive sector, household and other appliances will be hit hard.