Foxconn to build plant in Wisconsin, invest $10B

Foxconn, the Taiwanese electronics supplier for Apple and other tech giants, said Wednesday it would open its first major U.S. factory in Wisconsin, a boost both for the battleground state’s economy and the Trump administration’s efforts to bolster domestic manufacturing.

White House officials highlighted President Donald Trump’s direct negotiations with the company for the project, which they said would create 3,000 jobs and represent a $10 billion investment.

Trump joined Foxconn’s chair, Terry Gou, in Washington for a formal announcement, with two prominent Wisconsin Republicans, Gov. Scott Walker and Paul D. Ryan, the House speaker, also in attendance. The plant is to be built somewhere in Ryan’s district in southeastern Wisconsin, Foxconn said.

Gou said in January that Foxconn, the world’s largest contract electronics manufacturer, was considering investing more than $7 billion in the United States, and potentially adding 30,000 to 50,000 jobs.

The new factory will produce flatpanel display screens for televisions and other consumer electronics.

Foxconn’s announcement could also bring significant political benefits — for the company and for the White House. Although based in Taiwan, much of Foxconn’s production is done in China, and Trump has singled out Beijing’s trade practices for criticism, especially its yawning trade deficit with the U.S.

Foxconn has made promises to invest in the United States before, including in Pennsylvania, with little to show for it.

That history left some experts skeptical of the company’s latest commitment, and of the White House’s eagerness to claim credit.

“I’ll be excited about the Foxconn announcement when workers are getting paycheques in Wisconsin,” said Scott Paul, president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing, a non-profit partnership of domestic manufacturers and the United Steelworkers union. “Foxconn has a history of talking big and not necessarily delivering on their commitments.”