Bargaining chips? State intervention in the semiconductor sector and the geoeconomic challenge to trade law

Henrique Choer Moraes is speaking at Edinburgh Law School on Thursday 22 October, from 14:00 to 16:00. The talk is called Bargaining chips? State intervention in the semiconductor sector and the geoeconomic challenge to trade law, and it's an online-only session, so you can tune in from wherever you are in the city.

The session looks at how the world's largest economies have been stepping into global markets in the name of 'economic security', 'resilience' and 'self-sufficiency' — and how that sits at odds with the liberal orientation that underpins the multilateral trade regime. The semiconductor industry is the most visible example here: the chips that power almost everything we use are now at the heart of a geopolitical tug-of-war. Drawing on recent policies from major economies, Moraes sets out the logic behind this kind of government intervention, how it differs from things like economic sanctions, and whether trade law can actually accommodate it, especially in the context of WTO reform.

It's a good way to get a handle on why semiconductors have become such a flashpoint in global politics, and what that means for the rules of international trade. If you've been following the headlines about chip wars and supply chain security, this puts the legal and economic arguments behind them in one place.

Choer Moraes brings two different worlds to the table: he's a PhD candidate and Research Associate at Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in Belgium, and he's been a diplomat with the Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs since 2004, where he's currently Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of Brazil in The Hague. That mix of academic research and diplomatic experience should make for a talk that's as grounded in practice as it is in theory. The session runs from 14:00 to 16:00 on Thursday 22 October, and it's free to attend.