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Hynix says DRAM prices to rise further in H2

Mon May 18, 2009 11:58pm EDT

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(For other news from the Reuters Global Technology Summit, click on: here)

SEOUL, May 19 (Reuters) - Hynix Semiconductor Inc (000660.KS) expects prices of computer memory chips to increase further in the second half and aims to break even earlier than planned, the company's investor relations head said.

"The industry has fully bottomed out," said James Kim, vice president in charge of investor relations at the world's second-biggest memory chip maker.

"The trend (of price increases) is inevitable as demand and supply are almost balanced now," he told the Reuters Global Technology Summit in Seoul. Hynix, larger rival Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS) and all other players in the memory chip sector have been battered by the sector's worst downturn due to oversupply and vanishing demand in the wake of the global economic slowdown.

But signs of a recovery are slowly emerging as drastic output cuts have pushed up prices of dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chips, widely used in personal computers, both on a spot and contract basis.

Hynix, which racked up 4.7 trillion won ($3.8 billion) in net losses in 2008 and reported its sixth straight quarterly loss last month, may reach breakeven earlier than planned, Kim said.

"We had initially planned on reaching breakeven by the fourth quarter. But we are trying to bring that forward."

($1 = 1246.6 Won)

(For summit blog: blogs.reuters.com/summits/)

(Reporting by Marie-France Han and Rhee So-eui; Editing by Anshuman Daga)

((mf.han@reuters.com; +822 3704-5667;, Reuters Messaging: mf.han.reuters.com@reuters.net))

((If you have a query or comment on this story, send an email to news.feedback.asia@thomsonreuters.com)) Keywords: TECH SUMMIT/HYNIX

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