Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida welcomed and expected more investment from global chipmakers in Japan during a meeting with top executives on Thursday. The meeting was held ahead of the Group of Seven summit, which is set to begin on Friday.
Kishida told the executives, including those from Micron Technology Inc, Intel Corp and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co, that stabilising supply chains would be a topic of discussion at the G7 talks. He also expressed his desire for the government to work on further expanding direct investment in Japan and support the semiconductor industry.
In response, Micron said it would bring extreme ultraviolet (EUV) technology to Japan, becoming the first semiconductor company to do so, and expected to invest up to 500 billion yen with support from the Japanese government.
The G7 summit runs from Friday to Sunday, and Kishida is set to meet with U.S. President Joe Biden later on Thursday. Public support for Kishida has been on the upswing in the run-up to the summit, with a Jiji poll on Thursday showing approval for his cabinet exceeded disapproval for the first time in nine months.