South Korea and Japan, as two important countries in the field of semiconductors, have always had contradictions and competition in the past. In 2019, Japan imposed restrictions on key semiconductor raw materials in South Korea, which had a huge impact on the Korean semiconductor industry. Although Japan has recently removed South Korean companies from the blacklist, the development of South Korean semiconductors is still subject to the control of key raw materials by Japanese companies. In the face of such a situation, South Korean semiconductor companies, which may have chosen other ways out, chose to increase the Japanese market. Samsung plans to set up a research base in Japan to deepen the cooperative relationship with the Japanese semiconductor chain. Samsung hopes to improve the yield rate of its own chips by leveraging the strength of Japanese semiconductors, and further compete with TSMC in the cutting-edge market. This move has not only attracted attention in the global semiconductor community, but also indicates the deepening of cooperation between South Korea and Japan in the field of cutting-edge chips, and also means that South Korean semiconductors may once again be subject to Japan's restrictions.
The U.S. attitude toward the development of South Korea's semiconductor cutting-edge fields has attracted much attention. On the one hand, they have restricted the export of EUV lithography machines, mainly for the Chinese market, but in fact they have also included South Korean chip giants in the scope. On the other hand, the United States actively wooed TSMC to increase cooperation with Japanese semiconductors, and announced that the two sides would jointly conquer cutting-edge fields. It stands to reason that the United States has been trying to win over South Korean semiconductors, and it should also cooperate with South Korean semiconductors in cutting-edge fields. However, this is not the case, which may mean that American semiconductors believe that the development of Korean semiconductors also poses a certain "threat". The marginalization of South Korean semiconductors to the United States may make the United States unhappy, and the deepening cooperation between South Korea and Japan may not be good news for American semiconductors. Especially in the context of the United States' efforts to develop local chip manufacturing programs, the alliance of Japan and South Korea will become direct competitors, and for the United States, the future challenges are foreseeable.
For us, South Korea's strengthening of the cooperative relationship with Japanese semiconductors will help divert the scope of the United States' "encirclement and suppression" and win more buffer period for us. The United States has been trying to control and dominate the global semiconductor industry, constantly restricting China's development, and enforcing cutting-edge technology monopolies by partnering with companies such as TSMC. However, the cooperation between South Korea and Japan will give us time and space to develop so that we can better respond to the pressures and challenges of the United States. At the same time, the cooperation between South Korea and Japan semiconductors will also promote the development of the global semiconductor industry, increase competition in the market, provide more choices, and no longer rely on a few companies.
Summary: The contradictions and cooperation between South Korea and Japan semiconductors are changing, and South Korea's semiconductor increase in the Japanese market has attracted the attention of the global semiconductor community. At the same time, U.S. semiconductors are also facing new challenges and concerns. For us, the cooperation between South Korea and Japan semiconductors means more development space and choices, which can divert the scope of "encirclement and suppression" of the United States and win more buffer period for us. We should see the changes in this situation, and actively respond to it, seize the opportunity, and realize the innovation and development of our own semiconductor industry.