【Text by Observers Network, Wang Yi】On August 6 local time, U.S. President Trump announced that he would impose a 100% tariff on "all chips and semiconductors entering the United States," but products manufactured in the United States would be exempt. Trump did not specify the specific implementation details, but South Korea firmly believes that its semiconductor companies will not be affected by the 100% tariff.

According to Yonhap News Agency on July 7, Lee Han-kyu, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy of South Korea, said during an interview with SBS TV that South Korea has reached an agreement with the United States, and the U.S. has promised to grant South Korea "most-favored-nation treatment" in future tariffs, especially in the semiconductor and biotechnology sectors.

"If the most-favored-nation tax rate for U.S. semiconductors is 15%, we will also get 15%, and it doesn't matter if it becomes 100% or 200% in the future," Lee explained.

When asked whether this meant that Korean semiconductor companies such as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix would not be subject to a 100% tariff, he replied, "Yes."

Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy of South Korea, Lee Han-kyu, Bloomberg

Yonhap News Agency pointed out that South Korea recently completed the tariff negotiations with the United States through an investment and procurement plan worth $450 billion, obtaining the U.S. promise to reduce the existing "reciprocal tariffs" and car tariffs to 15%, and ensuring that even if the U.S. adds tariffs in the future in the fields of semiconductors and biotechnology, South Korea will still enjoy the lowest tax rate.

Based on this agreement, the South Korean government believes they will not be subject to a 100% tariff. However, Yonhap News Agency believes that even if there is a commitment of most-favored-nation treatment, if the U.S. imposes high tariffs uniformly on all countries, it is difficult to rule out the possibility that South Korea may also face high tax rates. Japan and the European Union have also recently obtained similar most-favored-nation treatment commitments in trade agreements with the U.S.

After Lee's statement, Samsung Electronics' stock price rose 2.6%, while SK Hynix's stock price fluctuated slightly by 0.6%, consistent with the overall market. Samsung Electronics has two chip manufacturing plants in Texas, USA, and SK Hynix has previously announced plans to build a high-bandwidth memory (HBM) packaging factory and R&D facilities in Indiana.

Baik Gil-hyun, an analyst at Yuanta Securities, analyzed that although both Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix have invested in the U.S., it remains questionable whether SK Hynix can obtain complete tariff exemptions solely based on its investment in the packaging factory. On the other hand, Samsung Electronics' stock price increase may benefit from its investment in the U.S., and may also be related to the news that the company will join Apple's supply chain in the U.S.

In addition to South Korea, foreign media outlets such as The Guardian in the UK and Bloomberg in the U.S. analyzed that due to previous investment commitments, the world's largest chip foundry TSMC may also be exempt from the 100% semiconductor tariff. Similarly, companies like NVIDIA and Apple may also be exempt due to their previous large investment commitments.

On August 6 local time, Trump announced his plan to impose a 100% tariff on semiconductors. Video screenshot

The ones more affected are small companies in other Asian countries and regions that cannot make investment commitments. Dan Lachica, head of the Semiconductor and Electronics Industry Foundation of the Philippines (SEIPI), said that 70% of the country's exports are semiconductors, and the new tariff would be "devastating" for them.

According to data from the World Semiconductor Trade Statistics organization, global demand for computer chips has been rising, with annual sales increasing by 19.6% up to June. In 2024, the U.S. imported over $60 billion worth of semiconductors, with over $50 billion coming from Asia, mainly supplied by China, South Korea, Japan, Malaysia, and other countries and regions.

Bloomberg analysis pointed out that although the 100% semiconductor tariff far exceeds analysts' predictions, the broad commitment to exemptions has calmed the market. However, the bigger issue may be Trump's intentions regarding electronics. He stated that he might impose taxes on all products containing chips as early as next week, theoretically covering almost all products from appliances to cars.

The American trade organization "Autos Drive America," representing foreign brand automobile manufacturers, previously warned that imposing a 25% tariff on semiconductors and their manufacturing equipment could increase the cost of each car by $1,200 to $2,500.

The Semiconductor Industry Association of the United States also issued a warning, stating that "non-targeted tariffs" could have a counterproductive effect on the U.S. by "increasing the costs of domestic technology development and chip manufacturing."

This article is an exclusive contribution from Observer's Network. Reproduction without permission is prohibited.

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7535752365685801491/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author. Please express your opinion by clicking on the [top/beat] buttons below.