Samsung's China semiconductor sales decline while US revenue grows

Samsung Electronics Austin plant Courtesy of Samsung Electronics — Samsung Electronics' fab facility in Austin, Texas/ Courtesy of Samsung Electronics

SEOUL, August 18 (AJP) - Samsung Electronics posted diverging fortunes in China and the United States in the first half of 2025, as U.S. sanctions weighed on Chinese demand and American technology companies fueled a surge in semiconductor purchases.

Samsung's exports to China fell 11 percent year-on-year to 28.79 trillion won (about $20.7 billion), down from 32.35 trillion won a year earlier. Sales to the United States, by contrast, climbed to 33.48 trillion won, overtaking China for the first time since late 2024, when Beijing’s trade-in subsidies briefly lifted demand.

Most of Samsung’s China-bound shipments were semiconductors, including LPDDR memory, NAND flash, image sensors and display driver chips, as well as some high-bandwidth memory products.

Its on-the-ground operations in China also flagged.

Samsung China Semiconductor, which produces NAND flash in Xi’an, reported revenue of 4.41 trillion won and operating profit of 533.6 billion won — both down from the previous year.

Shanghai Samsung Semiconductor, its local sales arm, saw revenue fall to 12.35 trillion won from 15.88 trillion won, with operating profit sliding to 193.8 billion won from 232.2 billion won. Analysts attributed the slump to waning trade-in incentives, sluggish consumer recovery and rising competition from Chinese rivals such as ChangXin Memory Technologies, or CXMT.

By contrast, U.S. operations delivered robust growth.

Samsung Austin Semiconductor, its Texas foundry, reported revenue of 2.3 trillion won, up 5.6 percent, while operating profit soared 65 percent to 423.8 billion won. Samsung Semiconductor Inc., its U.S. sales subsidiary, recorded a 28 percent revenue jump to 22.72 trillion won.

The surge was driven by heavy investment from American technology giants in artificial intelligence servers and data centers, as well as rising demand for Samsung’s foundry services.

Candice Kim candicekim1121@ajupress.com