Korea to Join Early Meeting of U.S.-Led Chip Alliance

Korean officials will attend a preliminary meeting of the U.S.-led Chip 4 alliance, a semiconductor coalition that also includes Japan and Taiwan to reduce global dependence on China. 

But Seoul wants to scupper a clause in the draft rules that would ban exports to China. A presidential office source said Sunday, “We expect to continue to fine-tune the agenda and our level of participation in the preliminary meeting next month.” 

Chip 4 is the brainchild of U.S. President Joe Biden, who proposed the alliance in March to protect semiconductor supply chains from Chinese caprice. 

But Korea is in a bind since China accounted for around 39 percent of its semiconductor exports worth US$50.2 billion last year, taking up over 30 percent of Samsung and SK Hynix’s total exports. Yet at the same time the Korean government wants a full role in the Chip 4 alliance so that its position can be reflected when making the rules. 

“Taking part in the Chip 4 alliance helps the future of our semiconductor industry too,” the government source said. “It is also beneficial to our national interests to cooperate with other semiconductor manufacturing countries and technology holders to maintain our lead and market dominance. But we want to suggest the pact should not exclude or regulate a particular party.” 

It remains to be seen how the balancing act will pan out.