Powerful Earthquake Strikes 'Silicon Island'...TSMC Also Halts Operations

Kumamoto Prefecture in Japan, the heart of the world's largest semiconductor contract manufacturer TSMC and a region aspiring to become the 'semiconductor capital,' has suffered massive damage including 36 deaths and over 9,000 displaced persons from a major earthquake that struck for the first time in 10 years, forcing TSMC's factory operations to suspend. The Kikuyomachi area and surrounding regions of Kumamoto Prefecture in Japan bear deep scars from the powerful earthquake that occurred before August 1, 2026. The region, which once enjoyed a semiconductor boom and was called 'Silicon