The United States has warned that companies' stockpiles of semiconductor chips have shrunk dramatically due to the global supply shortage, putting production at risk from any disruption. A survey of 150 firms for the Commerce Department found the median stocks held by manufacturers had fallen from 40 days' worth in 2019 to just 5 days' worth in 2021. It comes as Democrats in the House of Representatives published a bill for investment worth $52 billion in the sector.