WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 25th February, 2021) US President Joe Biden signed an executive order to ensure the availability of essential materials, including semiconductors, that have been in short supply over recent months.
Biden directed a 100-day review of supply chains for four "vital products" and a one-year review of industry bases in six sectors of the US economy.
"The order... does two things. First, it orders a 100-day review of four vital products - semiconductors... key minerals and materials like rare earths, that are used to make everything from harder steel to airplanes... pharmaceuticals and their ingredients... advanced batteries like the one used in electric vehicles," Biden said ahead of the signing.
The review will identify policy recommendations to fortify our supply chains at every step and critically to start implementing those recommendations right away, Biden added.
The president also called for massive investments in research and development - "like we did in the 1960s" - to ensure long-term competitiveness of the US manufacturing base in the decades ahead.
The Executive Order was signed in the wake of a semiconductors shortage that curtailed US auto production.
