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Technology Stocks : Amkor Technology Inc (AMKR) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: tech101 who wrote (72)	2/5/1999 2:26:00 PM
From: tech101	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1056

Samsung's Profit Up Sharply, Despite DRAM Slump semibiznews.com SEOUL-- Samsung Electronics Co. reported net profit of $265 million (313.2 billion won) for 1998, up 152% from the previous year, the company reported today. Sales totaled almost $17 billion (20 trillion won), a 9% jump over 1998. The gains reflected a sharp turnaround for the Korean electronics giant, after the financial crisis hit the country more than a year ago. Analysts also said the improved figures came from other product sectors besides DRAMs, which had incurred such heavy losses through most of 1998 that Samsung cut back production one week a month for more than a quarter. With DRAM prices now rising, Samsung might see even better results this year, some analysts felt. The firm said its debt-to-equity ratio was reduced to 198% by the end of 1998 from 298% at the end of the previous year. That would meet the target of the South Korean government's demand that the chaebols and their affiliated firms cut their debt to no more than 200% of equity. Samsung Electronics also said it will pay a 12% stock divided to shareholders, which is equal to about $0.73 a share. This compares with a 10% stock divided paid a year ago.

To: tech101 who wrote (72)	2/5/1999 10:06:00 PM
From: tech101	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1056

Part of the reasons for the chip overcapacity in the past year was due to larger wafer size (from 6 inches to 8 inches and 12 inches) and die shrinking. According to NationsBank Montgomery, "While previous shrinks have had led to a significant gain in die-per-wafer … some Montgomery studies have indicated that the move from 0.25-micron technology to 0.21-micron manufacturing is currently yielding only 40% more memory bits per wafer. This is not enough to offset the bit demand which is running at more than 80% annually, and increasing. " Does the larger size of wafer and shrinking die shrinking matter to AMKR business? Barely. A chip is still a chip that needs to be packaged, tested, and burned. However, the demand for more chips by more PCs, cell phones, DVD, HDTV, electronic toys, and Internet, … running "at more than 80% annually, and increasing" does matter.