The Looming Bottleneck for Global Tech

The stability of the global technology sector remains inextricably linked to energy security and the free flow of trade through the Strait of Hormuz. Advanced semiconductor fabrication is among the world's most energy-intensive industrial processes, with a single manufacturer in Taiwan consuming nearly 10% of that country's total electricity. Because Taiwan relies on imported liquefied natural gas (LNG) with only 1.5 weeks of onsite inventory, any maritime disruption threatens the power supply essential for AI and cloud computing infrastructure. Beyond electricity, the supply chain faces risks from secondary shortages of sulfur—a byproduct of oil refining critical for producing sulfuric acid used in chip materials. Historical data from 2008 and 2021 suggest that major oil price surges correlate with 30% drawdowns in semiconductor equities, as rising energy costs inflate the expense of building data centers while simultaneously weakening consumer demand.