South Korea’s political unrest threatens the stability of global tech supply chains

“South Korea is a semiconductor superpower, especially in memory chips and camera sensor chips, accounting recently for some 18% of the world’s total semiconductor production capacity,” said Sujai Shivakumar, an expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). “It accounts for 60.5% of the global memory semiconductor market, with a DRAM market share of 70.5% and a NAND market share of 52.6%.  The recent turmoil in South Korea only emphasizes the fragility of this network.” 

This highlights broader concerns about the vulnerability of global supply chains, exacerbated in recent years by China’s assertive geopolitical actions and the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“CIOs, drawing from recent black swan events, should proactively prepare for such shifts,” said Prabhu Ram, VP of the industry research group at Cybermedia Research. “This would include measures such as fostering greater flexibility in IT infrastructure, equipping teams to respond swiftly to market developments, and leveraging advanced analytics tools for real-time supply chain insights to proactively anticipate and mitigate potential disruptions effectively.”