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November 14, 2009
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| Hana Micron Inc., whose biggest customers are Samsung Electronics Co. and Hynix Semiconductor Inc., said it expects sales to rise next year as the computer-memory chip industry recovers. The company, based in Asan, Gyeonggi, is targeting revenue of between 270 billion won ($233 million) and 300 billion won in 2010 and profit of 20 billion won, Chief Executive Officer Choi Chang-ho said in a Wednesday interview. The memory chip market will remain strong until 2011, Choi said. Samsung, the world’s largest maker of computer memory chips, says the market is on the mend after a three-year slump and last month predicted industry shipments in 2010 may rise 40 percent from this year. The recovery in the $18.4 billion industry may last for two years, according to Morgan Stanley. Hana Micron, which specializes in chip-packaging and testing, said orders have increased from Samsung and Hynix, which account for almost half its revenue. The company’s factory utilization ratio is about 95 percent, Choi said. A recovery in the industry and increasing outsourcing of the so-called “back-end” process by chip manufacturers may help Hana Micron to post record earnings in the current period, according to Hong Jeong-mo, an analyst at Kiwoom Securities Co. Hynix, the world’s second-largest computer memory chip maker, said in May it will sell part of its equipment for the “back-end” process to a venture it plans to set up in China. Hana Micron will probably post net income of 15 billion won on revenue of 241 billion won in 2010, according to estimates by Lee Tae-ha, an analyst at Daewoo Securities Co. in Seoul. The company may report a loss of 1 billion won this year, according to Lee. Choi, 58, founded Hana Micron in 2001 after previously working at Samsung Electronics’ semiconductor division. He held a 27 percent stake in the company at the end of June, according to the latest financial statement. Hana Micron plans to boost revenue from flash-memory-based storage devices and win more overseas customers, Choi said. The company is also considering expanding into light-emitting diodes and rechargeable batteries in the long term, he said. Chip-related revenue fell 19 percent in the first half from the last six months of 2008, accounting for 68 percent of Hana Micron’s sales. Revenue from products including storage devices rose 70 percent in the first half, according to the company. Hana Micron plans to enter the Latin American market by forming a venture in Brazil to build a chip-packaging and testing plant, according to Choi. “We’re talking with a number of chipmakers to buy their chips so we can supply the finished products directly to customers in the region,” Choi said. The company, which expects to begin mass production in the first half of next year, is talking with the Brazilian government about the project, Choi said. Hana Micron shares have more than tripled this year, while the nation’s benchmark Kospi stock index has gained 40 percent. Bloomberg |
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