SK Hynix weighs future of China chip plant after U.S. tech curbs

South Korean chipmaker's situation 'very uncertain' due to export controls

An employee leaves an SK Hynix office in Seongnam, South Korea. The company's operating profit totaled 1.7 trillion won ($1.2 billion) for the three months through September, down 60.3% from the year before, while revenue fell 7.0% to 11.0 trillion won year on year. © AP

KIM JAEWON, Nikkei staff writer

October 26, 2022 09:09 JST

Updated on October 26, 2022 16:07 JST

SEOUL -- SK Hynix said on Wednesday that it would consider selling its memory chip production facilities in China in a worst-case scenario if recently imposed U.S. export controls make it too difficult to continue operations there.

"As a contingency plan, we are considering selling the fab, selling the equipment or transferring the equipment to South Korea," SK Hynix Chief Marketing Officer Kevin Noh said in a conference call to discuss its third-quarter earnings results. "It's a contingency plan," he stressed. "We want to [continue to] operate without facing this situation."