Deglobalizing retail

In the tech sector, Intel and Samsung are bringing chip production stateside. On March 23, Intel revealed that it will spend $20 billion to build two new chip plants in Arizona, signaling “a new era of innovation and product leadership,” says Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger. In February, Samsung publicized plans to build a $17 billion chip plant in the United States, reportedly considering sites in Texas, Arizona and New York.

While the roots of this local resurgence extend beyond COVID-19—in 2019, more than 85% of Walmart shoppers said they wanted shelves stocked with American-made products—the pandemic has significantly accelerated the shift. Biden’s recent efforts to reduce American dependence on foreign materials were prompted by “deep disruptions in the global movement of critical goods during the pandemic,” the New York Times writes. According to Deutsche Bank, “COVID-19 has turbocharged the de-globalization movement,” Business Insider reports. Moving forward, expect to see a fortification of local supply chains and domestic production reorienting the retail industry.