Prime Highlights
⦁ KB Securities analyst said Nvidia’s Korea visit carries major strategic significance for both sides.
⦁ Samsung began shipping its latest high-bandwidth memory chip samples ahead of rivals in late May.
Key Facts
⦁ Samsung Electronics is a South Korean technology giant and one of the world’s largest producers of semiconductors and consumer electronics.
⦁ South Korea’s semiconductor exports hit a record high in May, contributing to the country’s strongest total export growth in over four decades.
Background
Shares in Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics, and several other South Korean technology companies climbed sharply on Monday, driven by growing expectations of new partnerships in artificial intelligence and robotics following anticipated meetings between Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and senior Korean business leaders.
Samsung Electronics closed 10.1% higher at a record, while LG Electronics hit its daily trading limit of 29.9% for the second consecutive session, reaching an all-time high. Internet company Naver also surged 16%, after its top executives confirmed scheduled meetings with Huang later in the week.
Huang is expected to travel to South Korea and hold talks with LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo and other leading executives. Nvidia also plans to host a Korean Partner Night at the sidelines of the COMPUTEX trade show in Taipei, bringing together Huang and senior figures from Samsung, SK Hynix, and other companies.
An analyst at KB Securities said Huang’s visit carries major significance, adding that Nvidia needs Korea as a strategic partner.
Sentiment around Samsung received an additional lift after the company began shipping samples of its latest high-bandwidth memory chip to customers in late May, putting it ahead of rivals in distributing a product considered vital to AI data centres. Samsung counts Nvidia among its key customers.
South Korea’s semiconductor exports also hit a record high in May, helping the country’s total exports register their strongest growth in over four decades.
An analyst at BNK Investment and Securities noted that Samsung had previously traded at a discount to rival SK Hynix due to weaker performance in high-bandwidth memory, but recent developments appear to be closing that gap.