AI Boom: Semiconductor Imports Surge, Fashion Trade Slows

Athleisure and artificial intelligence do not compete for consumer dollars — at least, not directly.

But they do compete for mindshare and investment in the broader economy, where dramatic changes in a core sector can spill over everything else, a la mortgage debt in the 2008 financial crisis.

And right now, AI is everywhere and always dramatic.

The Commerce Department’s report on August trade on Tuesday showed that so far this year, semiconductor imports tallied $90.5 billion, up $41.3 billion, or 84 percent, from a year earlier.

Much of that flood of silicon is going to the data centers that are popping up all over and are increasingly controversial as AI prepares to remake the economy, work, life and thought.

Despite all the talk and handwringing over AI, companies, including fashion brands, are largely still waiting to see a return on all their new investment in the transformative technology.

If full-promise of AI is still in the future, the sector is right now driving the U.S. economy.

Consumers are also doing their part, holding up better against higher fuel prices and higher tariffs than many forecast. Shoppers are expected to boost their holiday buying by as much as 6 percent this year, although about half of that will be driven by inflation.

But where AI companies are racing to bring in more processing power, fashion is being more cautious.

Apparel and accessories imports tallied $55 billion so far this year, down $3.9 billion, or 6.6 percent. And footwear imports came in at $17.8 billion, off $355 million, or 2 percent.

That might well be a sign of prudence on the part of fashion brands, which have been trying to boost full-price sales by not over-ordering inventory.

Still, the increase in spending on imported semiconductors this year — $41.3 billion — totals 57 percent of the $72.8 billion spent to bring in fashion goods.

That’s a sign of something else, especially as it’s a level of spending that can only be sustained for so long.