Well. this doesn't sound good

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(don’t) let the chips fall as they may

PowerLine publishes “The Week in Pictures” every Saturday, and they’re always pretty amusing. The picture they paint in a post today, however, is not so funny:

Quote of the day

Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, quoted in the New York Times: “The single biggest threat to the world economy, the single biggest point of single failure, is that 97 percent of the high-end chips are made in Taiwan. If that island were blockaded, that capacity were destroyed, it would be an economic apocalypse.”

Via John Ellis/News Items.

JOHN adds: It’s OK, though. AOC is on the case.

Older news, but just as alarming, is the world’s, and, especially, our country’s dependence on China’s pharmaceutical drug production; such as, 97% of all antibiotics.

AI Overview

China is a dominant global supplier of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) for critical medicines, with estimates suggesting they control

80–90% of global production for certain antibiotics and essential compounds. While direct Chinese, finished drug imports to the U.S. are lower, they constitute roughly 13–25% of U.S. API, with indirect reliance through India being much higher.

Brookings +3

Key details on China's role in the pharmaceutical supply chain include:

  • High Dependency on Ingredients: China is the primary source for key starting materials (KSMs) and APIs, with studies indicating that nearly 700 U.S. medicines rely on at least one chemical solely sourced from China.

  • Antibiotics & Specific Drugs: China produces about 97% of all antibiotics used in the U.S.. They also account for 95% of U.S. ibuprofen imports and 74% of acetaminophen imports.

  • Global Impact: In 2024, China was the largest foreign supplier of critical pharmaceutical inputs to the U.S. by volume (39.9% of imports).

  • Direct vs. Indirect Imports: While only 13% of FDA-registered API facilities supplying the U.S. were located in China as of 2019/2020, this does not account for the high volume of raw materials sent to India for final manufacturing.

The reliance is driven by lower labor costs and less stringent environmental regulations.