Beijing has refrained from any direct criticism of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) after the world’s largest contract chip maker responded to Washington’s request for supply chain information, but that has not stopped a swirl of speculation about the potential impact of the company’s move on mainland Chinese industries. The US Department of Commerce’s request for such data was described as “an extortion of confidential information from chip firms” in an article published on Monday by Global Times , a daily tabloid that is an arm of People’s Daily , the Chinese Communist Party ’s mouthpiece. The Beijing Daily ,…