- tech360.tv
South Korean Firms Granted Indefinite Waiver on US Chip Gear Supplies to China
Updated: Jan 8
In a significant development, South Korean tech giants Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix have been granted an indefinite waiver to supply US chip equipment to their factories in China without requiring separate approvals from the United States.
The decision was confirmed by South Korea's presidential office and the companies themselves.
Previously, the South Korean chipmakers had been operating under a waiver that allowed them to bring US chip equipment into China without licenses. This extension of the waiver brings stability and certainty to their operations and investments in China.
Choi Sang-mok, senior presidential secretary for economic affairs, expressed that the easing of uncertainties surrounding the semiconductor firms' operations in China will enable them to pursue long-term global management strategies. The US Department of Commerce is updating its "validated end user" list, which determines the entities eligible to receive exports of certain technologies. Once Samsung and SK Hynix are included in this list, they will no longer need separate permission for export cases.
Samsung and SK Hynix, as the world's largest and second-largest memory chipmakers respectively, have made significant investments in their chip production facilities in China. Samsung produces around 40% of its NAND flash chips in Xian, while SK Hynix manufactures about 40% of its DRAM chips in Wuxi and 20% of its NAND flash chips in Dalian. The companies' combined market share accounts for nearly 70% of the global DRAM market and 50% of the NAND flash market.
Both Samsung and SK Hynix have welcomed the US government's decision, emphasising the positive impact it will have on the stability of the global semiconductor supply chain. Samsung stated that the coordination with relevant governments has significantly reduced uncertainties related to their semiconductor manufacturing lines in China. SK Hynix expressed its belief that the waiver extension will contribute to the stabilisation of the global semiconductor supply chain.
Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix have been granted an indefinite waiver to supply US chip equipment to their factories in China without requiring separate approvals.
The waiver extension brings stability and certainty to the operations and investments of the South Korean chipmakers in China.
The US Department of Commerce is updating its "validated end user" list to include Samsung and SK Hynix, eliminating the need for separate export permissions.
Source: REUTERS