"Strengthening Semiconductor Cooperation" Declared by Hanmi... What Is the Direction of Global Supply Chain Changes?

[Asia Economy Reporter Su-yeon Woo] Following the Korea-US summit, as the two leaders emphasized semiconductor supply chain cooperation, possibilities of changes in the global semiconductor market supply chain are being anticipated. Industry experts predict that the semiconductor supply chain will be reorganized centered on the United States, with global semiconductor companies including Samsung Electronics making large-scale investments and the US government responding with incentive policies.

President Moon Jae-in and U.S. President Joe Biden are holding a joint press conference after a summit at the White House on the afternoon of the 21st (local time). Photo by Yonhap News

Emphasizing the Importance of 'Semiconductor Supply Chain Cooperation' at the Korea-US Summit

On the afternoon of the 21st (local time), President Moon Jae-in stated at a joint press conference held immediately after the first summit meeting with US President Joe Biden at the White House, "We have agreed to cooperate to establish a stable supply chain for semiconductors, electric vehicle batteries, and pharmaceuticals."

President Biden also responded, "I believe that Korean companies investing in the US will achieve excellent collaboration," adding, "Not only will many jobs be created in the US, but supply chains such as semiconductors and electric vehicle batteries will be securely secured."

Earlier that morning, at the 'Korea-US Business Roundtable' held at the US Department of Commerce, President Moon said, "The two countries have strengthened semiconductor supply chain cooperation based on mutual complementarity," and added, "If Korea and the US join forces, US companies will secure a stable parts supply chain, and Korean companies will pioneer broader markets and grow together."

US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo stated, "We will actively support the incentives, water supply, raw materials, and other infrastructure that Korean companies require," and added, "Since the Biden administration has planned a large-scale support program of $50 billion in the semiconductor sector, we will not disappoint."

Samsung Electronics Offers Half of the 44 Trillion Won Investment Package... The Key is US Incentives

On the same day, the four major groups?Samsung, SK, Hyundai Motor, and LG?announced a total investment plan of 44 trillion won ($39.4 billion) in the US. Among them, Samsung Electronics announced it would invest $17 billion (19 trillion won) to build a new foundry plant. SK Hynix revealed plans to establish a large-scale research and development (R&D) center worth $1 billion (1.12 trillion won) in Silicon Valley for innovation in new growth areas such as artificial intelligence (AI) and NAND solutions.

US companies also announced plans to invest in essential materials, parts, and equipment sectors crucial to Korea's semiconductor industry. US-based DuPont announced it would establish an R&D center in Korea to develop core semiconductor material technologies such as photoresists. This is an additional investment following DuPont's January last year announcement of investments in EUV photoresist and CMP pad manufacturing facilities.

US-based Qualcomm stated that, having cooperated and grown with Korean companies in the telecommunications field from CDMA to 5G development, it will continue to expand investments in Korean partners. Qualcomm has so far made approximately $85 million in win-win cooperation investments with domestic small and medium-sized enterprises.

With Korean companies making large-scale investments, attention now focuses on whether the US government will expand specific incentives. On this day, the Korean government requested the US side to support incentives such as tax benefits and infrastructure investments for Korean companies to ensure smooth investment implementation.

Moon Seung-wook, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, said, "The Korean Ministry of Industry and the US Department of Commerce have agreed to actively support policies to promote mutual investment," adding, "In particular, to strengthen competitiveness in core industries such as semiconductors and to establish a stable supply chain, we will expand and develop more practical cooperation partnerships including joint R&D, workforce training and exchange, and standards cooperation."

On the morning of the 21st (local time), Kim Ki-nam, Vice Chairman of Samsung Electronics (center in the photo), attended the Korea-US Business Roundtable event held at the U.S. Department of Commerce in Washington. Photo by Yonhap News

Acceleration of Semiconductor Supply Chain Reorganization Centered on the US

Industry insiders expect that the reorganization of the global semiconductor supply chain centered on the US will accelerate following the Korea-US summit. At the 'Semiconductor Supply Shortage Countermeasure Video Conference' chaired by Secretary Raimondo the day before the summit, participants emphasized the need to increase transparency of information for long-term supply chain stabilization.

Previously, the US government allocated a budget of $50 billion to support domestic semiconductor production and R&D, focusing on attracting semiconductor production within the country and enhancing government transparency of the semiconductor supply chain. Due to the US government's active efforts to attract investment, investments and entries by Korean companies as well as global semiconductor companies into the US are expected to gradually expand.

Prior to the meeting, reports emerged that Taiwan's TSMC, a foundry competitor of Samsung Electronics, is considering additional investments worth tens of trillions of won in the US to build cutting-edge semiconductor production lines below 3nm. Recently, TSMC announced it would increase the number of semiconductor plants planned in Arizona from one to six.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.