In an interview, Toshiki Kawai, president of Tokyo Electron, one of the world's major manufacturers of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, said that the stable supply of semiconductors has become an issue for Japan as part of its economic security. He showed the recognition that it is necessary to strengthen investment in research and development from a perspective.
The stable supply of semiconductors is positioned as one of the important measures for economic security, such as confirming cooperation at the Japan-U.S. economic version of the "2 plus 2" meeting held for the first time last month.
Under these circumstances, Toshiki Kawai, president of Tokyo Electron, one of the world's major manufacturers of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, responded to an interview.
In this, President Kawai said that Japan's investment in research and development had weakened in the past, which is a point to reflect on, and said, "What is important is continued investment in research and development. It's important to have it," he said, acknowledging the need to strengthen investment in research and development at the private sector level, in addition to production capacity.
In addition, in response to the view that the growth in demand for semiconductors is overshadowed by concerns about the global economic slowdown, he said, "Semiconductors are important in both the progress of digitization and the movement toward decarbonization, and we believe that they will continue to grow in the medium to long term. I feel very virtuous," he said.