US Demands Share of Korean Chipmakers' AI Profits
US seeks share of Korean chipmakers' 'excess profits'
The US is reportedly asking for a cut of the massive profits made by Samsung Electronics and SK hynix from the global AI chip boom. Deputy US Trade Representative Rick Switzer argued that American companies deserve a share since their huge purchases drove these earnings. This claim adds tension to ongoing debates about profit distribution while Korean exports to the US hit record highs.
If the Korean chipmakers' partner firms in Korea are entitled to parts of the profits, the American ones are, too.
- A_D_E_P_T
The headline couldn't be more sensational, nor could the article be more obscurely and confusingly written. That said, I think that the headline is subtly inaccurate:
> “[The claim] was based on a rationale that American companies purchased large volumes of Korean semiconductors and thus contributed to the Korean firms' earnings,” the source said. “So, if the Korean chipmakers’ partner firms in Korea are entitled to parts of the profits, the American ones are, too.”
If I'm understanding this correctly, the Korean firms are reinvesting their profits in local partners, and a US trade delegation is trying to induce them to invest similarly in US firms. "US seeks share of Korean chipmakers' 'excess profits'" implies transfers to the US federal government, like a special windfall tax, which doesn't appear to be the case here. (And it would be outrageous, of course...)
- hulitu
World mafia doing mafia things.
But, if you need protection, you have to pay for it.