US Weighs Expanding Tariffs to Finished Semiconductors... "Relief for US-Based Production"

Lutnick: "Tariffs Are a Tool to Attract U.S. Investment"
Tariff Scope Could Expand to Consumer Electronics

The Donald Trump administration in the United States is considering expanding its semiconductor tariff policy from targeting chips themselves to also including finished products such as data center servers and laptops. At the same time, the administration is pursuing a plan to differentiate tariff burdens based on whether companies invest in manufacturing facilities within the United States. As a result, this is expected to influence the investment strategies of South Korean semiconductor companies such as Samsung Electronics and SK hynix in the US.

On September 2 (local time), US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick stated in an interview with CNBC during the G20 Innovation Ministers' Meeting in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, that the administration is considering a “targeted and prudent tariff policy” with respect to semiconductors.

Secretary Lutnick said, “Companies that manufacture in the United States will not have to pay tariffs. However, those who do not produce in the US should be prepared to pay the price to access the greatest market in the world.”

Ministry of Commerce official website.

According to Bloomberg, as the Trump administration reviews expanding semiconductor tariffs, there is a high likelihood that the administration will also provide tariff relief to companies that invest in domestic production facilities in the US.

Secretary Lutnick emphasized, “If you manufacture in the United States, we will provide tariff relief. If you do not, you will pay tariffs.” Through tariffs, the plan is to attract the global semiconductor industry’s production bases to the United States.

Secretary Lutnick pointed out that tariff pressure is already leading global semiconductor companies to invest in the US. He cited an estimated $1.2 trillion of committed investment for domestic semiconductor production, mentioning TSMC and Micron as representative examples.

He said, “TSMC is investing $265 billion in Arizona, and Micron is making a $250 billion investment. These two companies alone account for over $500 billion.”

Tariffs May Expand to Data Center Servers and Consumer Electronics

The scope of tariff application could also broaden significantly. In January 2026, the US imposed a 25% tariff on certain high-tech semiconductors, but the new tariffs could target not only the chips themselves but also finished products where these chips are embedded.

According to Bloomberg, the new tariffs may be expanded to include data center servers and consumer electronics. Politico also previously reported that the US government is considering targeting products containing semiconductors—such as laptops, gaming consoles, and data center servers—with tariffs.

If this happens, it could affect investments in data centers in the US, as these servers require numerous high-tech chips including AI accelerators, memory, and network semiconductors. There are concerns that if the tariffs are expanded to include finished server products, the cost of building data centers in the US may increase.

Bloomberg reported that, in response to such concerns, Secretary Lutnick presented tariff reductions for companies with manufacturing facilities in the US as a solution. In January 2026, the Trump administration signed a proclamation imposing a 25% tariff on certain high-tech semiconductors, such as Nvidia's H200. At that time, the White House had indicated that it could expand tariffs to cover a broader range of semiconductors and their derivatives in the future.

Samsung and SK Already Expanding US Production... Attention Turns to Potential Tariff Relief

SK hynix Indiana West Lafayette Advanced Packaging Groundbreaking Ceremony. SK hynix

Korean companies that have already built large-scale semiconductor manufacturing facilities in the US are also likely to be directly affected by the new tariff system. Samsung Electronics plans to invest over $37 billion in advanced semiconductor fabrication facilities in the US, centered around Taylor, Texas. The Taylor plant is dedicated to advanced logic semiconductor production and, together with existing facilities in Austin, forms part of a project to expand the company’s domestic production base in the US.

SK hynix is also investing over $4 billion to build the first high bandwidth memory (HBM) advanced packaging production base in the US at West Lafayette, Indiana. This marks the first HBM production base in the US, attracting significant attention locally. SK hynix plans to begin mass-producing next-generation HBM products in the second half of 2029.

If semiconductor tariffs become linked to US-based investment, Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are also expected to receive tariff relief. The key question is the extent of this relief. However, Secretary Lutnick did not specify the exact tariff rates, criteria for relief based on investment scale, or the implementation timeline on this day.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.