[Special Stock] Japan Lifts Export Restrictions... Semiconductor Stocks Including SK Hynix Rise

SK Hynix Up 5.4% Intraday, Samsung Electronics Up 1.8%

Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are showing significant gains in the KOSPI market.

At 10:52 a.m. on the 17th, Samsung Electronics was trading at 61,000 won, up 1.84% from the previous trading day. SK Hynix rose 5.44% to 83,300 won, reaching as high as 84,000 won during the session.

The improvement in investor sentiment toward semiconductor stocks was driven by news of Japan lifting export restrictions on semiconductor materials. According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on the previous day, Japan decided to lift export restrictions on three key semiconductor materials to South Korea: hydrogen fluoride, fluorinated polyimide, and photoresist.

Progress was also made as the 'K-Chips Act' (an amendment to the Restriction of Special Taxation Act) aimed at fostering the domestic semiconductor industry passed the Tax Subcommittee of the National Assembly's Planning and Finance Committee. The K-Chips Act raises the tax credit rate for semiconductor facility investments from 8% to 15% for large and medium-sized enterprises, and from 16% to 25% for small and medium-sized enterprises. This bill is expected to be approved at the full meeting of the Planning and Finance Committee on the 22nd, followed by the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, and then at the National Assembly plenary session on the 30th.

Additionally, the improvement in investor sentiment was likely supported by the positive momentum in the U.S. stock market, where large technology stocks led gains, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rising more than 4%. Foreign investors purchased 740,000 shares of Samsung Electronics, and institutional investors bought over 200,000 shares. Institutional investors also acquired more than 600,000 shares of SK Hynix.

In particular, for SK Hynix, major securities firms evaluated that earnings improvement is expected starting from the first quarter, which likely expanded investor sentiment. SK Hynix is forecasted to record an operating loss of 3.32 trillion won in the first quarter, with sales estimated at 4.95 trillion won, down about 60% year-on-year. Dongwon Kim, a researcher at KB Securities, said, “In the second half of the year, gradual supply and demand improvement is expected due to the slowdown in the decline of memory semiconductor prices entering cash cost levels and the effect of supply reduction by semiconductor companies,” adding, “The downward revision of SK Hynix’s earnings consensus is also expected to slow down starting from the first quarter earnings announcement.”