Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), the world's largest maker of advanced chips, stopped its chip-making machinery and evacuated its staff. The major chipmaker under contract with Apple and Nvidia has moved staff from some areas and said it is assessing the impact of the 7.4 magnitude quake off Taiwan's east coast.
Smaller local rival United Microelectronics also stopped machinery at some factories and evacuated facilities in Hsinchu and Tainan, it said in a statement.