Seoul— Recent U.S. export restrictions on Nvidia’s H20 artificial intelligence (AI) accelerators to China are expected to have a limited impact on South Korean chipmakers, industry experts said Wednesday.
Nvidia confirmed it has been informed by U.S. authorities that it now requires a license to export its H20 chips to China indefinitely, according to Yonhap news agency. The H20 accelerators were the most advanced AI chips Nvidia could legally ship to China under the previous restrictions.
SK hynix currently supplies its eight-layer HBM3E (fifth-generation high bandwidth memory) for Nvidia’s H20 chips, while Samsung Electronics does not supply HBM for this specific model.
Analysts believe the new regulations will not significantly affect South Korean semiconductor companies in the short term. SK hynix is now focusing on its newer 12-layer HBM3E chips, which are primarily used in high-performance AI systems outside of China.
Moreover, SK hynix had already secured sales contracts for its HBM chips used in the H20 before the new rules took effect, minimizing any financial fallout.
“Nvidia has projected a $5.5 billion charge due to the new export restrictions, but SK hynix completed its HBM sales for the H20 chips in March and won’t face inventory write-downs like Nvidia,” said Chae Min-sook, a researcher at Korea Investment & Securities Co. “The sanctions are not expected to impact SK hynix’s annual HBM production or earnings outlook.”
Still, industry insiders caution that the broader implications could be more concerning. The restrictions may cool the momentum in China’s booming AI chip market, which had seen rapid growth fueled by cost-effective models from companies like DeepSeek.
“While there’s no direct impact, these curbs could slow the overall growth of the AI chip sector and reduce future business opportunities,” an executive at a South Korean semiconductor company noted. “The heightened uncertainty has definitely raised concerns about the industry’s long-term prospects.”
Shares of SK hynix and Samsung Electronics closed down 3.65% and 3.36%, respectively, on Wednesday. The broader Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) ended the day down 1.21%. (Source: IANS)
