US Commerce Secretary: South Korean storage chip manufacturers will face 100% tariffs if they do not establish factories in the US.

US Secretary of Commerce, Howard Lutnick, warned that storage chip manufacturers, including those in South Korea, may face a 100% import tariff unless they increase their production capacity in the United States. "All companies looking to produce storage chips face two choices: either pay a 100% tariff or produce in the United States," Lutnick said last Friday at the groundbreaking ceremony for Micron Technology, Inc.'s $10 billion manufacturing facility. He also added that potential tariffs may apply to South Korean chip manufacturers under a new trade agreement reached with China Taiwan. "This is industrial policy," Lutnick said, without naming any specific companies. Bloomberg has published related comments on this matter. Previously, the US Department of Commerce announced a new trade agreement with China Taiwan, granting tariff exemptions based on the investment amount of Chinese Taiwanese companies in new chip manufacturing facilities in the US. Lutnick also made similar remarks. Analysts believe that the potential tariff mechanism proposed by the Trump administration in its trade agreement with China Taiwan is likely to be replicated and applied to South Korean semiconductor companies. The lack of clear details in the semiconductor terms between South Korea and the US remains a core concern for the South Korean government and companies. Last year, South Korea agreed to a 15% tariff rate for most goods exported to the US in trade negotiations, but the semiconductor terms have yet to be finalized.