The US Department of Defense has made a conditional commitment to lend up to $1.5 billion to semiconductor manufacturer Wolfspeed. The funds will be used to expand the production of silicon carbide materials and power devices, including at the company's base in Durham, North Carolina.
The commitment is for a period of 30 years and is structured through the Office of Strategic Capital. According to Reuters Wolfspeed plans to use the funding to develop gallium nitride technologies for communications infrastructure, electronic warfare and other national security applications.
The amount does not represent a final investment. The financing is conditional and depends on further due diligence, the signing of final contracts and approvals from US authorities. Under the proposed terms, Wolfspeed could issue the government warrants to acquire up to 7.5% of the company's shares.
Trump uses protests in France as a warning
Amid the midterm election campaign, President Donald Trump has cast the violence in France as a warning to the United States. He told an audience in Kansas: “When I look at France, it's not about the schools. It's about people coming into the country and hating the country.“
Trump blamed migrants, jihadists and communists for the unrest and warned that such a scenario would not be tolerated in the US. Associated Press notes that French authorities have not linked migrants to the violence. According to the agency, the protests began due to dissatisfaction with the state of schools and the high cost of living, before some of the demonstrations escalated into clashes, looting and arson.
In France, authorities reported thousands of arrests and hundreds of police officers injured in the protests. President Emmanuel Macron said that the legitimate demands of the demonstrators should not be confused with the actions of those involved in the violence.
Letters with white powder alarm Congress
Meanwhile, at least three dozen congressmen and election officials in 32 states have been targeted by suspicious letters, many of which contained a white powdery substance, Axios reported. Both Democrats and Republicans received the letters. The names included Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senators Amy Klobuchar, Susan Collins and Pete Ricketts.
A letter to Rep. Adam Smith's district office led to the evacuation of employees. They returned to work the next day. Election offices in several states were also evacuated, while other packages were intercepted before they could be opened.
“The FBI and the U.S. Postal Service are investigating a series of suspicious packages sent to various addresses across the country,“ an FBI spokesman said.Preliminary tests have not found any hazardous materials in the samples. Investigators have not yet determined who sent the letters or whether the cases are part of a coordinated attack. According to Axios, the series of mailings has heightened fears of political intimidation and disrupted the work of election officials just weeks before the midterm elections.
Sources: investing.com, axios.com, apnews.com