South-east Asia’s chip and solar exports to US plunge – the worst may be yet to come

[SINGAPORE] The US has slashed its semiconductor imports from South-east Asia, with shipments from Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia plunging over the past year amid a widening crackdown on trade circumvention, based on three-year trade data up to February 2025.

Shipments are expected to slump further with the recently unveiled tariffs of up to 3,521 per cent on solar imports, threatening to further squeeze the four South-east Asian countries.

The best-case scenario for the Asean countries would be exporting more to the European Union as Europe builds up its technology ecosystem. They could also increase flows to China as demand for chips to power the artificial intelligence (AI) boom continues to grow.