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☆ Nvidia supplier SK Hynix reverses losses in first quarter on explosive AI demand
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-25 | by ( Sheila Chiang | In Sheilachiang | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

SK Hynix Inc. signage at the company's office in Seongnam, South Korea, on Monday, April 22, 2024. SK Hynix is the world's second-largest memory chipmaker after Samsung Electronics and supplies high-bandwidth memory chips catering to AI chipsets for companies like Nvidia . The explosive demand for AI chipsets boosted the high-end memory chip market, hugely benefiting players like SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics. To meet AI memory demand, the firm said it plans to increase supply of HBM3E – the latest generation of high-bandwidth memory for AI. SK Hynix said it will also introduce 32GB Double Data Rate 5 products this year to strengthen its leadership in the high-capacity server DRAM market.

Persons: SeongJoon Cho Organizations: SK Hynix Inc, SK Hynix, Bloomberg, Getty Images, South Korean, Revenue, Samsung Electronics, Nvidia Locations: Seongnam, South Korea, HBM3E

☆ SK Hynix swings to fourth-quarter profit on strong AI chip demand
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-25 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The SK Hynix Inc. logo is displayed on a glass door at the company's office in Seoul, South Korea, on Monday, Jan. 27, 2014. SK Hynix aims to select a U.S. site for its advanced chip packaging plant and break ground there around the first quarter of next year. South Korea's SK Hynix on Thursday posted its first quarterly profit in a year on robust demand for high-end chips used in artificial intelligence and restocking orders from Chinese mobile clients. The results compared with expectations for a 192 billion won operating loss, according to 23 analysts' views compiled by LSEG SmartEstimate, weighted toward analysts who are more consistently accurate. SK Hynix last posted an operating profit in the third quarter of 2022.

Persons: LSEG SmartEstimate Organizations: SK Hynix Inc, SK Hynix, South Korea's SK Hynix, Revenue Locations: Seoul, South Korea, U.S

☆ SK Hynix denies report about approaching SoftBank on Kioxia merger
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Memory chips by South Korean semiconductor supplier SK Hynix are seen on a circuit board of a computer in this illustration picture taken February 25, 2022. REUTERS/Florence Lo/Illustration Acquire Licensing RightsSEOUL, Oct 18 (Reuters) - South Korea's SK Hynix Inc (000660.KS), the world's second-largest memory chip maker, said on Wednesday it has not approached Japan's SoftBank Group (9984.T) to partner up in a possible deal with memory chipmaker Kioxia Holdings Corp.A Nikkei report earlier on Wednesday said SK Hynix is reluctant to back a merger between U.S. rival Western Digital's memory chip operations and Kioxia, in which SK Hynix holds a stake. The report went on to say that SK Hynix had sounded out SoftBank for a partnership in case the merger falls through. "SK Hynix denies Nikkei's report that the company approached SoftBank for collaboration with regard to the Kioxia-Western Digital deal," the company said in a statement, without commenting on its stance on the merger. Kioxia and Western Digital Corp (WDC.O) are pursuing a merger as a global chip glut and weak demand for flash memory chips strengthens pressure for chipmakers to consolidate.

Persons: Florence Lo, Japan's, SoftBank, Kioxia, Joyce Lee, Anton, Simon Cameron, Moore, Louise Heavens Organizations: SK Hynix, REUTERS, Rights, Korea's SK Hynix Inc, Japan's SoftBank, Kioxia Holdings Corp, Nikkei, Wednesday, U.S, Western, SoftBank Group, Western Digital Corp, Thomson Locations: Rights SEOUL

People walk past a Huawei store with advertisements for the Mate 60 series smartphones, at a shopping mall in Beijing, China August 30, 2023. That's another really big advance they've made," Dan Hutcheson, an analyst with TechInsights, told Reuters. "The significance is that it shows that China has been able to stay 2-2.5 nodes behind the world's best (chip) companies. "China's been buying tools like crazy so they probably have the capability to do this and yield ok with it." Huawei and SMIC did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Persons: Yelin, they've, Dan Hutcheson, TechInsights, chipmaker SMIC, Hutcheson, Gina Raimondo's, it's, China's, Brenda Goh, Joyce Lee, David Kirton, Miyoung Kim, David Evans Organizations: Huawei, REUTERS, Rights, Huawei Technologies, Reuters, The, HK, U.S . Commerce, SMIC, Apple, South Korea's SK Hynix Inc, SK Hynix, U.S, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, The Ottawa, Huawei's, U.S, Seoul, Shenzhen

People walk past a Huawei store with advertisements for the Mate 60 series smartphones, at a shopping mall in Beijing, China August 30, 2023. REUTERS/Yelin Mo/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSHANGHAI, Sept 7 (Reuters) - Huawei Technologies' new high-end smartphone contains more China-made chip components than previous models in a sign of Beijing's advances in the semiconductor sphere, according to research firm TechInsights, which is taking the device apart. That's another really big advance they've made," Dan Hutcheson, an analyst with TechInsights, told Reuters. "The significance is that it shows that China has been able to stay 2-2.5 nodes behind the world's best (chip) companies. "China's been buying tools like crazy so they probably have the capability to do this and yield ok with it."

☆ South Korea vows support for its chip sector amid China-US tension
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SEOUL, June 8 (Reuters) - South Korea pledged support for its chip sector on Thursday, with President Yoon Suk Yeol describing competition in the industry as an "all-out war" amid heightened Sino-U.S. tension. The government plans to help expand research and development, bolster smaller players, strengthen legal protection for chip technology and set up a chip testing facility, the industry ministry said in a statement. South Korea has sought to avoid becoming embroiled in a tit-for-tat row between China and the United States over semiconductors. On one hand, chipmakers Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS) and SK Hynix Inc (000660.KS) depend on U.S. technology and equipment. At the same time, about 40% of South Korea's chip exports go to China, trade ministry data showed.

Persons: Yoon Suk, Yoon, Fitch, Joyce Lee, Edwina Gibbs, Christopher Cushing Organizations: Companies, Samsung Electronics Co, SK Hynix Inc, Washington, Samsung, SK Hynix, SK Hynix's, SK, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, South Korea, United States, Korea, China, U.S

Japan's Kioxia and U.S. chipmaker Western Digital have been hit hard by plunging market demand and oversupply. Combining their flash memory businesses could boost competitiveness against rivals like South Korea's Samsung Electronics (005930.KS). Western Digital did not respond immediately to a request for comment. Kioxia, previously Toshiba Memory, was sold by Toshiba Corp (6502.T) in 2018 to a consortium led by Bain Capital for $18 billion. Kioxia and Western Digital were in merger talks in 2021 before the negotiations stalled over a series of issues including valuation discrepancies.

☆ TrendForce says SK Hynix to raise China legacy chip output capacity
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Memory chips by South Korean semiconductor supplier SK Hynix are seen on a circuit board of a computer in this illustration picture taken February 25, 2022. REUTERS/Florence Lo/Illustration/File PhotoSEOUL, May 4 (Reuters) - South Korea's SK Hynix Inc (000660.KS) plans to expand its legacy chip production capacity at its chip manufacturing facilities in China, market research firm TrendForce said. The world's second-biggest memory chip maker's long-term strategy involves shifting its capacity expansion back to South Korea, while its China chip production site caters to domestic demand in China and the legacy DRAM memory chip market, the TrendForce report said. SK Hynix did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on Thursday. Last year, SK Hynix said it had received authorisation from the U.S. Commerce Department for a year to supply equipment needed for chip production in facilities in china, without seeking additional licensing requirements.

☆ Korea’s Stock Market Shines Even as Economy Dims
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Frances Yoon | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Inside a dealing room at Hana Bank in Seoul on April 25. Photo: yonhap/ShutterstockShould a slowing economy lead to a weak stock market? Not judging by the performance of South Korea’s benchmark index this year. The country’s stock market is the best performer in Asia and one of the top indexes in the world so far this year. The Kospi Composite Index has risen more than 11% since Jan. 1, fueled by a rally in the shares of big technology companies like Samsung Electronics Co. and SK Hynix Inc., which together account for a fifth of the index.

☆ Why Korea Is Beating Other Asian Stock Markets
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Frances Yoon | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

South Korea’s stock market is the best performer in Asia and one of the top indexes in the world so far this year. Photo: yonhap/ShutterstockShould a slowing economy lead to a weak stock market? Not judging by the performance of South Korea’s benchmark index this year. The country’s stock market is the best performer in Asia and one of the top indexes in the world so far this year. The Kospi Composite Index has risen more than 11% since Jan. 1, fueled by a rally in the shares of big technology companies such as Samsung Electronics Co. and SK Hynix Inc., which together account for a fifth of the index.

☆ SK Hynix reports record quarterly operating loss, but expects rebound later this year
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Lim Hui Jie | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

In this article .FKRX300 Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNTwatch nowSouth Korean chipmaker SK Hynix has reported a record quarterly operating loss of 3.4 trillion won ($2.54 billion) for the first quarter of the year. This is a reversal from the 2.84 trillion won operating profit in the same period last year, and a larger loss from the the 1.89 trillion won operating loss the previous quarter. Employees stand in front of the SK Hynix Inc. logo displayed at the company's office in Seongnam, South Korea, on Monday, July 24, 2017. Shares of SK Hynix were higher by 1.75% in afternoon trade after surging as much as 3.5% earlier Wednesday. "We expect revenues to rebound in the second quarter after bottoming out in the first, driven by a gradual increase in sales volume," SK Hynix also said.

The firm's loss widened as a global economic slowdown worsened a memory chip glut during the first quarter, prompting sluggish demand and falling prices, SK Hynix said. However, "we expect revenue to rebound in the second quarter after bottoming out in the first, driven by a gradual increase in sales volume," SK Hynix said. Such cuts will reduce inventory across the industry and improve market conditions from the current quarter, SK Hynix said. The loss is the biggest since SK Group acquired Hynix in 2012, and is the second in a row after the fourth quarter's 1.9 trillion won loss. SK Hynix shares traded up 2.1% versus a 0.2% decline in the wider market (.KS11), after the firm flagged a market rebound.

☆ TSMC talking to US about CHIPS Act 'guidance' amid subsidy concerns
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TAIPEI, April 10 (Reuters) - Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC (2330.TW) said on Monday it is communicating with Washington about its "guidance" for a law designed to boost U.S. semiconductor manufacturing that has sparked concerns about subsidy criteria. "We can confirm that we are communicating with the U.S. government about the CHIPS ACT guidance," TSMC, the world's leading contract chipmaker, said in a short emailed statement. Taiwan Economy Minister Wang Mei-hua told reporters on Monday that TSMC was specifically talking to the United States about the details of the subsidies. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd (TSMC) is investing $40 billion in a new plant in the western U.S. state of Arizona, supporting Washington's plans for more chip-making at home. The subsidies would come from a $52 billion pool of research and manufacturing funds earmarked under the CHIPS Act.

Samsung estimated its operating profit fell to 600 billion won ($455.5 million) in January-March, from 14.12 trillion won a year earlier, in a short preliminary earnings statement. The production cut signal is unusually strong for Samsung, which previously said it would make small adjustments like pauses for refurbishing production lines but not a full-blown cut. The first-quarter profit fell short of a 873 billion won Refinitiv SmartEstimate, weighted toward analysts who are more consistently accurate. It was the lowest since a 590 billion won profit in the first quarter of 2009, according to company data. Revenue likely fell 19% from the same period a year earlier to 63 trillion won, Samsung said.

☆ Taiwan says US officials have visited to discuss concerns about chip subsidies
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Taiwan Economy Minister Wang Mei-Hua and the Speaker of the Czech Republic parliament Marketa Pekarova Adamova attend a Taiwan-Czech Joint Business Council Meeting in Taipei, Taiwan, March 27, 2023. REUTERS/I-Hwa ChengTAIPEI, March 31 (Reuters) - The United States has sent officials to Taiwan to listen to concerns in the chip industry about the criteria for new U.S. semiconductor subsidies, Taiwan Economy Minister Wang Mei-hua said on Friday. The criteria are worrying companies like Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS) and SK Hynix Inc (000660.KS), South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol said on Thursday, a concern shared by the world's leading contract chipmaker in Taiwan, TSMC (2330.TW). "The U.S. side has sent relevant officials to Taiwan to listen to the industry's opinions, to collect their views," she added, without giving details. "Following on, if the industry needs the government to help communicate with the United States, the Economy Ministry will certainly assist with communication," Wang said.

☆ US chip subsidy criteria could be a 'burden', says South Korea
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Samsung is building a chip plant in Texas that could cost over $25 billion and has said it is reviewing the guidelines. However, funding applications may require detailed cost structure information as well as projected wafer yields, utilisation rates and price changes, which three Korean chip sources told Reuters was akin to revealing corporate strategy. The United States' subsidy provisions should reflect the opinions of the government and companies of South Korea so they do not impose any undue burden on those companies, South Korean Trade Minister Ahn Duk-geun said in a statement on Thursday. Ahn's comment came from a meeting with United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai in South Korea, a leading chipmaking country and major investor in the U.S. chip sector. The U.S. Department of Commerce will accept subsidy applications for leading-edge chip facilities from March 31, and for current-generation, mature-node and back-end production facilities from June 26.

☆ SK Hynix to seek further exemption from US chip curbs against China -CEO
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SEOUL, March 29 (Reuters) - South Korea's SK Hynix Inc (000660.KS) will ask the United States for a year's further exemption from chip curbs against China, the chief executive of the world's No. In October last year, SK Hynix said it had received authorisation from the U.S. commerce department for a year to supply equipment needed for chip production in facilities in China, without seeking additional licensing requirements. The United States announced curbs on exports of chip-making equipment to China, requiring licenses for U.S. companies to export advanced chips and chip-making equipment in a bid to slow China's technological advance. On Wednesday, the company it would pursue previously announced plans to build an advanced chip packaging plant in the United States as the review process ends. Reporting by Hyunsu Yim; Additional Reporting by Heekyong Yang; Editing by Clarence FernandezOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Samsung Electronics to invest $230 bln through 2042 in South Korea chipmaking base
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, March 15 (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS) on Wednesday said it will invest around 300 trillion won ($230 billion) by 2042 to develop what the government called the world's largest chip-making base, in line with efforts to enhance South Korea's chip industry. The amount makes up most of the 550 trillion won in private-sector investment announced by the government on Wednesday, under a strategy that expands tax breaks and infrastructure support to increase the competitiveness of high-tech industries including those involving chips, displays and batteries. Samsung's manufacturing additions will include five chip factories and attract up to 150 materials, parts and equipment makers, fabless chipmakers and semiconductor research-and-development organisations, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said in a statement. South Korea, home to the world's two biggest memory chip makers, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix Inc (000660.KS), is seeking to improve supply-chain stability to become a major player in the non-memory chip field, currently dominated by chipmakers such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd (2330.TW) and Intel Corp (INTC.O). ($1 = 1,305.1200 won)Reporting by Heekyong Yang and Joyce Lee; Editing by Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ ASML, China customers haunted by uncertainty on new Dutch chip export rules
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Tosterling Philip Blenkinsop | Philip Blenkinsop | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The "installed base" segment contributed about 25% of ASML's worldwide revenue in 2022. ING analyst Marc Hesselink calculated that the new Dutch rules could possibly affect products that account for 10% of ASML's worldwide sales. The Chinese may have a competitive advantage there, and ASML's sales in China could even grow modestly. Regardless, ASML will thrive outside China in the long run as chipmakers worldwide expand capacity, he said. "The demand for ASML machines is not going to be impacted, it's simply going to shift to a different region," he said.

☆ S. Korea's trade minister to raise concerns over Chips Act in US meetings
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Heekyong Yang | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SEOUL, March 8 (Reuters) - South Korea's trade minister will meet with counterparts in Washington this week to express concerns that the U.S. Chips Act could make the U.S. a less attractive investment destination, its trade ministry said. During his trip, South Korea's trade minister Ahn Duk-geun plans to meet with senior officials from the U.S. Commerce Department and White House as well as officials from major think tanks to discuss the Chips Act. The Chips Act plays a central role in the Biden administration's effort to bring semiconductor manufacturing home, and its success is vital to U.S. ambitions to keep ahead of China in global markets. Under the Chips Act, companies that accept the incentives are required to share with the U.S. government a portion of their profits that exceed initial projections by an agreed-upon threshold. Companies winning chips subsidies would be barred from engaging in joint research and technology licensing efforts or expanding semiconductor manufacturing capacity in foreign countries of concern like China for 10 years.

☆ South Korea Says U.S. Chips Act Subsidies Have Too Many Requirements
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Jiyoung Sohn | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

SEOUL—The U.S. Chips Act is dangling billions of dollars in subsidies in front of the world’s biggest semiconductor manufacturers, but South Korea says there are too many strings attached. The conditions for receiving the subsidies unveiled last week are putting two of South Korea’s biggest chip makers— Samsung Electronics Co. and SK Hynix Inc.—in a difficult position as they decide whether to apply for the federal funding, government officials and industry analysts said.

☆ Factbox: Chinese chipmaking equipment manufacturers filling void left by U.S. export restrictions
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Naura's most advanced etching machine supports 55 nm and 28 nm chipmaking technology, well behind the leading edge of chip manufacturing. The firm also makes deposition machines, which apply chemicals and gases to silicon wafers throughout the chipmaking process. It produces machines that can service the 14 nm to 28 nm process nodes of its deposition machines. ADVANCED MICRO-FABRICATION EQUIPMENT INC CHINA (AMEC) (688012.SS)AMEC makes etching equipment used to remove excess material from the surface of silicon wafers. BEIJING E-TOWN SEMICONDUCTOR TECHNOLOGY CO LTD (BEST)BEST produces degumming equipment used to remove photoresist chemicals during the lithography process.

SEOUL, March 6 (Reuters) - South Korea will halt a World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute process sparked by a complaint against Japan as the two countries discuss Japan's export curbs on high-tech materials to South Korea, the two countries' trade ministries said on Monday. In July 2019, Japan imposed export curbs on materials used in smartphone displays and chips amid a decades-old row with Seoul about South Koreans who said they were forced to work under Japan's 1910-1945 occupation of Korea. As South Korea has proposed its companies would compensate those people, both countries will quickly begin discussions to return export curbs to their pre-July 2019 state, the ministries said on Monday. "The suspension of the WTO dispute resolution process is not really a withdrawal... but a pause," said Kamchan Kang, director-general at Korea's trade ministry. Reporting by Joyce Lee and Heekyong Yang; Editing by Kim Coghill and Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[1/2] Memory chips by South Korean semiconductor supplier SK Hynix are seen on a circuit board of a computer in this illustration picture taken February 25, 2022. SK Hynix flagged lower chip prices in the current quarter. For the fourth quarter ended December, SK Hynix swung to a worse-than-expected 1.7 trillion won ($1.38 billion) operating loss, from 4.2 trillion won profit a year earlier. Analysts had expected a 1.3 trillion won operating loss, according to Refinitiv SmartEstimate. On its earnings call, SK Hynix said it will focus its resources on advanced chips to prepare for a market upturn in 2024.

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