Samsung China confirmed to the Global Times late Sunday that it has been investigated and is now "actively cooperating with China's antitrust agency."
The response came after industry website Jiweinet reported on Friday that the Chinese antitrust agency launched a sudden investigation into the Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen offices of Samsung, SK Hynix Inc and Micron Technology Inc on Thursday seeking certain information.
The report said that investigations may have been sparked by concern about continued price increases for memory chips in the domestic market.?
Micron, the largest U.S. maker of computer memory chips, responded that "Micron confirms that China's State Administration for Market Regulation authorities visited Micron's China sales offices on May 31 seeking certain information," Bloomberg reported on Saturday, citing a statement the U.S.-based company sent to it.
"Micron is cooperating with Chinese officials," read the statement.
In May, the Chinese antitrust agency conducted an interview with Micron, and it also conducted investigations into whether the two South Korea-based companies (Samsung and SK Hynix) and Micron jointly manipulated DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory) prices in the Chinese market, domestic news site Economic Observer reported on Sunday.
In 2017, the three giants accounted for 96 percent of the global DRAM market. The three companies' total revenue in the semiconductor business in China reached $44.68 billion, up 39.1 percent year-on-year, the report noted.
If the three chip giants are found to have a price monopoly according to Chinese laws, it is estimated that they might face fines ranging between $800 million and $8 billion, said the report.
