Samsung and SK Hynix will hand over the chip secrets to the United States

In order to solve the global chip shortage, the U.S. government requires chip manufacturers to voluntarily share business information, which has aroused the concern of the industry for fear of disclosing trade secrets.
However, the original hesitant Korean chip giants Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix reportedly decided to cooperate with the requirements and submit the information to the US government before the deadline.
Yonhap reported that in late September this year, the White House asked automobile manufacturers, chip companies and other industries to provide trade secret information such as orders and inventory to understand the causes of supply chain bottlenecks, so as to alleviate the shortage of automotive chips faced by American automobile manufacturers. The payment deadline is until November 8.
Although the US government emphasizes that it is voluntary to ask manufacturers to provide information, Korean enterprises are under pressure to compromise and submit information.
U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo previously said that if enterprises are unwilling to respond, the United States has other ways to urge enterprises to provide information, and is even expected to quote its defense production law. She hopes not to let the situation go to that step, but do what you should, and give top priority to strengthening the transparency of the supply chain.
According to informed sources, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix will cooperate with the requirements of the United States and are expected to provide relevant information on chip business to the U.S. government before November 8.
Kim ki Nam, vice president of Samsung Electronics and head of equipment solutions Department (DS), told reporters at the Korea Electronics Show (KES) last week that the company is carefully considering the US request and thinking about how to respond.
Lee Seok hee, CEO of SK Hynix, also said that he was conducting an internal audit on the matter and was in close negotiations with the South Korean government.
South Korean semiconductor industry insiders said that if Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix respond to the requirements of the U.S. government at that time, it will be equivalent to divulging the confidential information of China, South Korea's largest customer, to the United States. What measures China will take after that needs special attention.
Statistics show that China has become the largest market for Korean semiconductors, accounting for 40% of Korean semiconductor exports in 2020. The report of the Korean Institute of foreign economic research shows that Korean semiconductor enterprises may be increasingly forced to "choose sides" between China and the United States, and the United States may directly pressure Korean enterprises to reduce their dependence on the Chinese market.

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