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The
United States is considering limiting shipments of such
equipment to memory chip makers in China to slow technological
advances at rivals and protect U.S. firms, Reuters reported last
month.
"There could be some difficulties in the long run when we have
to put new equipment into our factory in China," Chief Executive
Kyung Kye-hyun, who heads Samsung's chip business, said during a
media tour of the firm's chip-making facilities at Pyeongtaek,
South Korea.
"We're not riding on the conflict between the U.S. and China,
but we're trying to find a win-win solution," he said, adding it
is hard for Samsung to give up the China market, which he
estimated supplies more than 40% of the global IT industry.
The United States and China have been at loggerheads in the
technology sphere at least since the administration of former
President Donald Trump sanctioned Chinese telecommunications
equipment makers on national security grounds. Tension has since
risen over the countries' differing relations to global
chip-making centre Taiwan, with the United States last week
banning the export of advanced artificial intelligence chips.
Kyung said Samsung had expressed concern about a U.S. proposal
for a chip alliance dubbed Chip 4 - which would also include
Japan and Taiwan - including the need for South Korea to seek
China's understanding before any negotiations.
Samsung, the world's largest chipmaker by revenue, is seeking to
find a "common denominator" that benefits all interested parties
including supply chains worldwide, he said.
Kyung also said a recent slowdown in chip demand is likely to
continue next year but that Samsung can adjust investments to
improve profit margins.
"We need to build a big hotel to secure big customers," Kyung
said, adding chip design firms are very interested in the $17
billion facility Samsung is building in Taylor in the U.S. state
of Texas where production will begin in 2024.
Samsung on Wednesday said it had begun making NAND flash memory
chips at its third chip line in Pyeongtaek, which it said is the
world's largest semiconductor production facility.
It plans to also make DRAM chips and offer contract
manufacturing on the third line, and has begun foundation work
for a fourth line in Pyeongtaek.
(Reporting by Joyce Lee; Editing by Christopher Cushing)
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