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Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.<\/a>, the world\u2019s largest maker of advanced chips, halted some chipmaking machinery and evacuated staff after the biggest earthquake to hit its home island in\u00a025 years<\/a>.<\/p>\n TSMC, the main contract chipmaker to\u00a0Apple Inc.<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Nvidia Corp.<\/a>, moved staff out of certain areas and said it\u2019s assessing the impact of a\u00a0temblor<\/a>\u00a0measuring 7.4 in magnitude off the east coast. Smaller local rival\u00a0United Microelectronics Corp.<\/a>\u00a0also halted machinery at some plants and evacuated certain facilities at its hubs of Hsinchu and Tainan, it said in a statement.<\/p>\n Taiwanese firms from TSMC to\u00a0ASE Technology Holding Co.<\/a>\u00a0make and assemble the vast majority of the semiconductors that go into devices from iPhones to cars from factories vulnerable to even the slightest tremors. A single vibration can destroy entire batches of the precision-made semiconductors. TSMC shares\u00a0slid\u00a0about 1.5% in early trade, while UMC was down less than 1%.<\/p>\n \u201cTSMC\u2019s safety systems are operating normally. To ensure the safety of personnel, some fabs were evacuated according to company procedure,\u201d the company said in a statement. \u201cWe are currently confirming the details of the impact.\u201d<\/p>\n Taiwan is\u00a0prone<\/a>\u00a0to quakes because it\u2019s near the convergence of two tectonic plates. Yet it\u2019s also the source of an estimated 80% to 90% of the highest-end chips required for advanced applications such as smartphones and AI.<\/p>\n Industry executives and government officials have long called out the dangers of centering the world\u2019s advanced semiconductor production on an island that, apart from natural shocks, is considered a potential military flashpoint. That became particularly evident during the Covid era, which exacerbated a global shortage of the vital components.<\/p>\n American officials, mindful of the threat to Taiwan from a mainland Chinese government that considers the island a renegade province, have pushed U.S. and Taiwanese companies\u2014including TSMC\u2014to diversify geographically.<\/p>\n But TSMC expansion projects now underway in Japan and the U.S. will take time to get up to full speed and American companies such as\u00a0Micron Technology Inc.<\/a>\u00a0still maintain major operations on the island.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n