Korea should dismiss 'No. 1 illusion' in semiconductor, battery industries
Major industrial powers recently announced strategies to intensively promote the semiconductor and battery sectors, in which Korea has been occupying the top spot in the world. Last week, semiconductor behemoth Intel unveiled a $20 billion investment plan to build two chip manufacturing factories in the U.S. to catch up with global leaders in the foundry business, opening the door to a global semiconductor war.
Intel's plan attracted global attention, as it will move beyond healthy competition among companies and rather ignite rivalry between countries that regard computer chips as national security assets. Industry executives interpret Intel's move as reflecting Washington's intention to jump into the global semiconductor war by putting its largest company at the forefront and reducing the U.S. reliance on Asia. The EU, Japan and China also announced their plans to bolster their semiconductor industries.
Nevertheless, some analysts say the semiconductor industry "stands at a crossroads of life and death" in Korea, the world's No. 1 manufacturer of memory chips. Instead of assisting businesses, the Korean government is tying their hands and feet tightly with new regulations in labor, environment and corporate governance areas. But a sense of mission to promote strategic industries for national security but an anachronistic "anti-big business" mindset is not in the minds of government officials and ruling party leaders responsible.
Similar things are happening in the battery sector, too. Volkswagen announced recently that it would build six battery factories in Europe. The world's No. 2 automaker also said it would gradually switch to unified prismatic battery cells for its electric vehicles, breaking away from the current pouch-type cells supplied by LG Energy Solution and SK Innovation, and chose China's CATL as its partner.
The government, which put forth the "K-battery" as an axis of the Korean New Deal, also should examine difficulties facing the domestic industry and provide policy supports. The global industrial map is changing at the speed of light. Still, Korean leaders are now engrossed only in partisan fights. In the meantime, the nation's flagship industries are losing their luster one after another. Now is the time for both government and business leaders to throw away the illusion that Korea is No. 1 in these sectors and go back to square one.
Major industrial powers recently announced strategies to intensively promote the semiconductor and battery sectors, in which Korea has been occupying the top spot in the world. Last week, semiconductor behemoth Intel unveiled a $20 billion investment plan to build two chip manufacturing factories in the U.S. to catch up with global leaders in the foundry business, opening the door to a global semiconductor war.
Intel's plan attracted global attention, as it will move beyond healthy competition among companies and rather ignite rivalry between countries that regard computer chips as national security assets. Industry executives interpret Intel's move as reflecting Washington's intention to jump into the global semiconductor war by putting its largest company at the forefront and reducing the U.S. reliance on Asia. The EU, Japan and China also announced their plans to bolster their semiconductor industries.
Nevertheless, some analysts say the semiconductor industry "stands at a crossroads of life and death" in Korea, the world's No. 1 manufacturer of memory chips. Instead of assisting businesses, the Korean government is tying their hands and feet tightly with new regulations in labor, environment and corporate governance areas. But a sense of mission to promote strategic industries for national security but an anachronistic "anti-big business" mindset is not in the minds of government officials and ruling party leaders responsible.
Similar things are happening in the battery sector, too. Volkswagen announced recently that it would build six battery factories in Europe. The world's No. 2 automaker also said it would gradually switch to unified prismatic battery cells for its electric vehicles, breaking away from the current pouch-type cells supplied by LG Energy Solution and SK Innovation, and chose China's CATL as its partner.
The government, which put forth the "K-battery" as an axis of the Korean New Deal, also should examine difficulties facing the domestic industry and provide policy supports. The global industrial map is changing at the speed of light. Still, Korean leaders are now engrossed only in partisan fights. In the meantime, the nation's flagship industries are losing their luster one after another. Now is the time for both government and business leaders to throw away the illusion that Korea is No. 1 in these sectors and go back to square one.
