韩国半导体生产税抵免或难惠及三星和SK海力士，利好偏向本土材料设备企业

The government is introducing what is being called a "Korean version of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA)," but the benefits are expected to concentrate on domestically focused materials, parts, and equipment (MPE) firms rather than large memory chipmakers.
According to industry sources on the 4th, analysts say the effectiveness of the benefits for large companies such as Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) and SK hynix (000660.KS) is low, due to the "domestic production and sales" requirement for the production tax credit and a clause barring overlap with the investment tax credit.
First, Samsung Electronics and SK hynix export more than 90% of their production volume overseas, making it difficult to meet the domestic sales requirement. "Given a business structure where exports account for the vast majority, the tax reduction effect from this new tax system is negligible," an industry official said.
The clause barring overlapping credits is also cited as a factor blocking large companies' access to the production tax credit. Products manufactured at facilities that have already received the investment tax credit face restrictions on new tax benefits. "For large companies undertaking investments in the hundreds of trillions of won, maintaining the investment tax credit, which applies a high credit rate of 15 to 25 percent to the investment amount itself, is a far more advantageous option," an industry official noted.
By contrast, MPE firms, which form the backbone of Korea's semiconductor ecosystem, are expected to receive considerable benefits. Because they have large domestic companies as their main clients, they perfectly meet the "domestic production and sales" requirement. Notable examples include Dongjin Semichem, which supplies photoresist, a core chip material, and Soulbrain, which manufactures high-purity etchants, as well as front-end core equipment firms such as Wonik IPS and Jusung Engineering, all of which are expected to gain substantial benefits.
"Domestically focused MPE firms with plants in Korea can meet the conditions with ease," an industry official said. "The biggest question is how broadly key MPE items will be included in the enforcement decree to be announced later."
Meanwhile, chip exports exceeded 40 billion dollars for two consecutive months, at 44.8 billion dollars in June and 41 billion dollars in July. In the second quarter, the DRAM market saw shifts in market share depending on product mix. According to Counterpoint Research, Samsung Electronics recorded a 39% DRAM share (by revenue) in the second quarter, ranking first.
SK hynix came in second at 26%, while U.S.-based Micron took third place at 25%, closely trailing hynix. This is attributed to the larger price increase for general-purpose DRAM compared to HBM. Samsung Electronics, which has a high proportion of general-purpose DRAM, increased its revenue, while SK hynix, which has a high proportion of HBM and has signed long-term agreements (LTAs), saw its share decline.
China's Changxin Memory Technologies (CXMT), the industry's fourth-largest player, recorded the highest revenue growth rate of 716% from the same period last year, backed by solid domestic demand for general-purpose DRAM and expanded production capacity, capturing a 7% share.