According to Yonhap News Agency, the South Korean President's Office announced on October 9 that the U.S. government decided to indefinitely extend the exemption period for Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix's factories in China to import U.S. chip equipment.

In other words, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix can freely supply semiconductor equipment containing American technology to Chinese factories without requiring separate approval.

The U.S. Commerce Department is updating its "verified end-user" list to determine which entities can export specific technologies, Yonhap News Agency said. Once included on the list, there is no need to obtain a separate export license, which means that US export control policies are effectively suspended indefinitely.

In October 2022, the United States promulgated export regulations prohibiting companies from supplying manufacturing technology for DRAM memory chips below 18 nanometers and NAND flash memory chips above 128 layers to Chinese factories. Export controls are designed to slow technological progress in China’s chip industry. The U.S. government granted Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix a one-year exemption over their huge investments in chip facilities in China. The initial exemption was granted last October and is expected to expire on October 11.

Among them, Samsung produces NAND Flash memory chips in Xi'an, accounting for 40% of Samsung's global NAND Flash production. In addition, Samsung also has a chip packaging factory in Suzhou. SK Hynix has multiple factories in mainland China, among which the DRAM memory chips produced by the Wuxi factory account for 50% of the company's global output.

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