Trump Blocks Broadcom Bid for Qualcomm


President Trump has blocked Broadcom’s unsolicited, $117 billion takeover bid for Qualcomm, citing national security concerns. The president acted on the recommendation of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, which cited the possibility of Qualcomm’s chip technology being compromised by Chinese interests, if it were acquired by Singapore-based Broadcom. The move is t... » read more

Xcerra: Back to the Drawing Board


It’s been nearly two weeks since Xcerra and Hubei Xinyan Equity Investment Partnership announced they have terminated their merger agreement in the face of apparent opposition by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, the federal interagency panel that reviews transactions for their impacts on national security. Xcerra and Hubei Xinyan also withdrew their CFIUS application.... » read more

The Week In Review: Manufacturing


Chipmakers Last year, Analog Devices Inc. (ADI) completed the acquisition of Linear Technology. Now, ADI plans to shut down one of Linear’s fabs as well as a test operation. “Analog Devices plans to close the smallest of its four wafer fabs, which was acquired as part of its March 2017 acquisition of Linear Technology and is located at Hillview Drive in Milpitas, California. This clo... » read more

2017: A Good Year for ATE


The rising revenue enjoyed by automatic test equipment vendors in 2017 translated into soaring stock prices for some publicly held companies. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 25% for 2017. Advantest’s shares traded on the Tokyo Stock Exchange had a 2017 low of 1,787 yen (about $15.85 at the year-end currency exchange rate) and a 52-week high of 2,698 yen ($23.92), up 51% from the... » read more