近期地缘政治事件和贸易紧张局势正在重塑半导体供应链,特别是光刻胶材料。韩国公司正增加对国内供应商的依赖,并已获得进口俄罗斯石脑油的豁免,而日本公司则遵守七国集团(G7)的限制,由于其准时制(just-in-time)库存模式面临中断。这种分歧为韩国供应商在关键光刻胶生产过程中创造了机会,也为日本供应商带来了风险。
AI
影响
由于地缘政治紧张局势导致光刻胶供应链发生变化,可能会影响半导体制造能力和成本。
排序理由
该集群讨论了由于地缘政治事件和政策决定而导致关键半导体供应链发生重大变化,影响了主要的国际公司。[lever_c_demoted from significant: ic=11 ai=0.4]
If the Iran conflict drags on, or even if it does not, but Samsung and Hynix want to avoid supply chain disruptions in the future, expect a greater reliance on the Korean suppliers going forward. (11/11)
And finally, On April 23, 2026, the Korean Financial Services Commission launched a "Joint Support System” under which 17 Korean banks have expanded
the credit limits (L/Cs) for companies like Jaewon and Chemtronics.
Buying Naphtha from the U.S. or Russia right now is 90% more
Further, Japanese firms like Daicel and Toagosei are masters of "Just-in-Time" efficiency. They typically keep about 20 days of Naphtha inventory. When the Strait of Hormuz closed in March, they hit a wall almost immediately.
On the other hand, due to the 2019 trade war trauma,
After increasing their USA supplied Naphtha in mid 2025, Korean companies then went further and secured a US sanction waiver to import Russian Naphtha early
this year, while the Japanese companies are largely sticking to G7-aligned restrictions and waiting for Middle Eastern http…
What is the opportunity today?
With the war in Iran, and the subsequent disruption to the Naphtha flow from the Middle East, we are seeing an opportunity for the local Korean supply chain,
and a risk to the Japanese suppliers. While Japanese companies have remained almost
So today there are currently two models - Integrated Japanese vs. Localized Korean Production:
🟠 Integrated Japanese : Major Japanese firms like Daicel and Toagosei handle an "integrated" production process. For example, Daicel produces everything from the precursor (propylene
Here is where things have split:
🟠 Historically, the entire Naphtha to Photoresist process was done by
Japanese companies.
🟠 But, over the last several years, Korean companies have started to take over parts of the process in an attempt to localize supply chains for Samsung
Additionally, PGMEA is also mixed with polymers from Japanese companies such as Shin-Etsu, TOK, and JSR to create a specialized Photoresist, a light sensitive material, used in photolithography. (4/11)
Next chemical companies in either Japan or Korea convert the propylene gas into an ultra-high-purity liquid called PGMEA. PGMEA is the "workhorse" solvent for the photolithography process. (3/11)
Here is what the supply chain looks like:
An oil called Naphtha is shipped on giant tankers from Middle Eastern countries like Kuwait, UAE and Saudi Arabia by companies like Aramco (Saudi Arabia) or
ADNOC (UAE).
Then Integrated Japanese Chemical companies like Daicel and
Something to watch closely as the war in Iran drags on:
A very obscure part of the semiconductor supply chain, Naphtha, is potentially
becoming a quiet constraint on AI chips. (1/11) 🧵 https://t.co/rnhSvAJycV