The auto sector is digesting a new and potentially damaging supply-chain disruption from an unlikely source: a small Dutch semiconductor manufacturer with an outsized influence on how cars and trucks are made. 

The Wall Street Journal’s Ryan Felton, Raffaele Huang and Stephen Wilmot write that Nexperia notified customers last week that it was stopping shipments of parts, people familiar with the matter say. The move came after the Dutch government wrested control of the company from its Chinese owner, Wingtech Technology.

Nexperia, whose parts end up in cars from BMW, Toyota and Mercedes-Benz, produces high volumes of semiconductors and basic transistors that are used in vehicle systems, including electronic control units. Car companies and parts makers are now racing to find alternative sources of chips, saying that if Nexperia’s chips aren’t shipped, vehicle production could be affected in the next few weeks.

With the push for AI dominance at warp speed, tech companies aren’t waiting around for the archaic U.S. power grid to catch up.

The Journal’s Jennifer Hiller writes that supply-chain snarls and permitting challenges are complicating the modernization of the grid. The U.S. should be adding about 80 gigawatts of new power generation capacity a year to keep pace with AI as well as cloud computing, crypto, industrial demand and electrification trends, according to ICF. It is currently building less than 65 gigawatts.

One data center can devour as much electricity as 1,000 Walmart stores, and an AI search can use 10 times the energy as a google search. So, AI data-center developers are bringing their own natural-gas turbines and fuel cells online to fill the gap.

• Foxconn Technology’s shares surged after its chairman said he met with ChatGPT maker OpenAI and plans to meet with chip giant Nvidia. (WSJ)
• Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. raised its outlook further as quarterly profit soared on strong chip demand for AI and high-performance computing. (WSJ)
   

New U.S. tariffs are forcing IKEA to do something it hates: raise prices. The Journal’s Chelsey Dulaney writes that the Swedish brand has slashed prices to lure shoppers after a period of rampant inflation, but only about 15% of what it sells in the U.S. is sourced regionally, leaving it exposed to new duties.

IKEA has been tight-lipped on how it expects the tariffs to affect business, but the retailer has cut operational costs and, in some categories, bumped up prices. Efforts to cultivate U.S. suppliers have mitigated some tariff pain. IKEA sources all its kitchen cabinets for the U.S. market stateside, for example.

IKEA is looking at sourcing other products, such as mattresses, from local suppliers, but for other products like the Billy bookcase, European factories have an edge despite tariffs.

• EU goods exports to the U.S. in August tumbled 26% from July after a tariff deal that ramped up duties. (WSJ)
• Britain’s economy expanded by 0.1% in August, following a 0.1% contraction in July. (WSJ)
• Existing-home sales in Canada fell by 1.7% in September after five straight months of increases. (WSJ)
• Australia’s unemployment rate increased to 4.5% in September, its highest since late 2021. (WSJ)
• Federal officials say they found no evidence of widespread undervaluing of imported appliances after Whirlpool last month accused rivals of possible tariff evasion. (WSJ)
• Nestlé said it would cut 16,000 jobs, 6% of its global workforce, and look at exiting some of its 2,000-plus brands. (WSJ)
• An Israeli airstrike killed the Houthis’ military chief of staff. (WSJ)
• U.S. tariffs will cost worldwide businesses $1.2 trillion this year, according to S&P Global. (CNBC)
• Microsoft is aiming to produce most of its new products outside of China as soon as next year, according to sources. (Nikkei Asia)
• Just one ship built in China is calling at the Port of Los Angeles this week after U.S. port fees on Chinese vessels went into effect. (Seatrade Maritime News)
• South Korean carrier HMM placed orders worth a total of $2.55 billion for a dozen containerships able to run on LNG. (Journal of Commerce)
• Hong Kong-listed dry-bulk carrier Pacific Basin Shipping is restructuring its operations amid tensions over U.S. and Chinese port fees. (Lloyd’s List)
• The Trump administration said it would withhold $40.6 million in transportation funding from California for allegedly failing to comply with English proficiency rules for truck drivers. (Reuters)
• Norfolk Southern is suing Voorheesville, N.Y., for blocking the construction of a crew-change facility to support the shift of its New England intermodal trains. (TrainsPRO)
• U.K.-based Dexory raised $165 million to expand its AI-powered warehouse platform. (SupplyChain247)
• Miami-based I Squared Capital agreed to acquire Pittsburgh’s Liberty Tire Recycling from Energy Capital Partners. (Recycling Today)
• DHL Express said in a news release that it was rolling out 45 all-electric Mercedes-Benz eSprinter vans to its U.S. delivery fleet.

Mark R. Long is editor of WSJ Logistics Report. Reach him at mark.long@wsj.com. Follow the WSJ Logistics Report team on LinkedIn: Mark R. Long, Liz Young and Paul Berger.