Item 1A. Risk Factors
The factors discussed below are cautionary statements that identify important factors and risks that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated by the forward-looking statements contained in this report. For more information regarding the forward-looking statements contained in this report, see the Table of Contents of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. You should carefully consider the risks and uncertainties described below, together with all of the other information included in this report, in considering our business and prospects. Many of the following risks and uncertainties are, and will be, exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic and any worsening of the global business and economic environment as a result. The risks and uncertainties described below are not the only ones facing Amkor. Additional risks and uncertainties not presently known to us may also adversely affect our business operations. The occurrence of any of the risks and uncertainties described below could affect our business, liquidity, results of operations, financial condition or cash flows.
Summary of Risk Factors
An investment in our common stock involves various risks, and you are urged to carefully consider all of the matters discussed in Part II, Item 1A of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q under the caption “Risk Factors” (not just those discussed under “Summary of Risk Factors”) in considering our business and prospects. The following is a list of some of these risks:
Company-Specific Risk Factors
•dependence on the highly cyclical, volatile semiconductor industry and vulnerability to industry downturns and declines in global economic and financial conditions;
•dependence on international factories and operations, and risks relating to our customers’ and vendors’ international operations;
•competition with established competitors in the packaging and test business, the internal capabilities of integrated device manufacturers, and new competitors, including foundries;
•decisions by our integrated device manufacturer and foundry customers to curtail outsourcing;
•our absence of backlog and the short-term nature of our customers’ commitments;
•our substantial investments in equipment and facilities to support the demand of our customers;
•difficulty achieving high capacity utilization rates due to high percentage of fixed costs;
•changes in costs, quality, availability and delivery times of raw materials, components and equipment, including any disruption in the supply of certain materials due to regulations and customer requirements, as well as wage inflation and fluctuations in commodity prices;
•the historical downward pressure on the prices of our packaging and test services;
•fluctuations in our manufacturing yields;
•our ability to develop new proprietary technology, protect our proprietary technology, operate without infringing the proprietary rights of others, and implement new technologies;
•any warranty claims, product return and liability risks, and the risk of negative publicity if our products fail, as well as the risk of litigation incident to our business;
•restrictive covenants in the indentures and agreements governing our current and future indebtedness;
•fluctuations in interest rates and changes in credit risk;
•the possibility that we may decrease or suspend our quarterly dividend;
•our significant severance plan obligations associated with our manufacturing operations in Korea; and
•the ability of certain of our stockholders to effectively determine or substantially influence the outcome of matters requiring stockholder approval.
General Risk Factors
•health conditions or pandemics, such as COVID-19, impacting labor availability and operating capacity, capital availability, the supply chain and consumer demand for our customers’ products and services;
•fluctuation in demand for semiconductors and conditions in the semiconductor industry generally, as well as by specific customers, such as inventory reductions by our customers impacting demand in key markets;
•the development, transition and ramp to high volume manufacture of more advanced silicon nodes and evolving wafer, packaging and test technologies, may cause production delays, lower manufacturing yields and supply constraints for new wafers and other materials;
•our substantial indebtedness;
•difficulty funding our liquidity needs;
•dependence on key customers or concentration of customers in certain end markets, such as mobile communications and automotive;
•difficulty attracting, retaining or replacing qualified personnel;
•maintaining an effective system of internal controls;
•our continuing development and implementation of changes to, and maintenance and security of, our information technology systems;
•challenges with integrating diverse operations;
•any changes in tax laws (including with respect to the Tax Act), taxing authorities not agreeing with our interpretation of applicable tax laws, including whether we continue to qualify for tax holidays, or any requirements to establish or adjust valuation allowances on deferred tax assets;
•laws, rules, regulations and policies imposed by U.S. or other governments, such as tariffs, customs, duties and other restrictive trade barriers, national security, data privacy and cybersecurity, antitrust and competition, tax, currency and banking, labor, environmental, health and safety; and
•natural disasters and other calamities, health conditions or pandemics, political instability, hostilities or other disruptions.
Company-Specific Risk Factors
Dependence on the Highly Cyclical Semiconductor Industry - Our Packaging and Test Services Are Used in Volatile Industries and Industry Downturns, and Declines in Global Economic and Financial Conditions Could Harm Our Performance.
Our business is impacted by market conditions in the semiconductor industry, which is cyclical by nature and impacted by broad economic factors, such as world-wide gross domestic product and consumer spending. The semiconductor industry has experienced significant and sometimes sudden and prolonged downturns in the past. If the industry or markets we compete in experience slower, or even negative growth, our business and results of operations may be adversely affected.
Since our business is, and will continue to be, dependent on the requirements of semiconductor companies for outsourced packaging and test services, any downturn in the semiconductor industry or any other industry that uses a significant number of semiconductor devices, such as telecommunications, automotive, consumer electronics, or computing, could have a material adverse effect on our business and operating results. During downturns, we have experienced, among other things, reduced demand, excess capacity and reduced sales. For example, the Covid-19 pandemic has currently disrupted demand in the automotive end market, an inventory correction in the smartphone market and weakness in the
general market reduced demand during 2019, and generally soft economic conditions and a lack of compelling new mobile products constrained overall demand during 2015.
In addition, declines in global economic and financial conditions have harmed our business in the past, and future global downturns could adversely affect our business. The Covid-19 pandemic and the effects of governmental initiatives to control the pandemic have adversely affected and may continue to adversely affect the economies and financial markets of many countries, resulting in an economic downturn that may affect demand for our services and our operating results. Although the magnitude of the impact of Covid-19 pandemic on our business and operations remains uncertain, the continued spread or potential re-emergence of Covid-19 or the occurrence of other epidemics or pandemics, and the imposition of related public health measures and travel and business restrictions may adversely impact our business, financial condition, operating results and cash flows. In addition, we have experienced and will continue to experience disruptions to our business operations resulting from quarantines, self-isolations, or other movement and restrictions on the ability of our employees to perform their jobs that may impact our ability to meet customer commitments. It is difficult to predict the timing, strength or duration of the economic slowdown caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, or which end markets will experience a slowdown, or subsequent economic recovery, which, in turn, makes it more challenging for us to forecast our operating results, make business decisions and identify risks that may affect our business, sources and uses of cash, financial condition and results of operations. Additionally, if industry conditions deteriorate, we could suffer significant losses, as we have in the past, which could materially impact our business, liquidity, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows.
Risks Associated with International Operations - We Depend on Our Factories and Operations in China, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Portugal, Singapore and Taiwan. Many of Our Customers’ and Vendors’ Operations Are Also Located Outside of the U.S.
We provide packaging and test services through our factories and other operations located in China, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Portugal, Singapore and Taiwan. Substantially all of our property, plant and equipment is located outside of the United States. Moreover, many of our customers and the vendors in our supply chain are located outside the U.S. The following are some of the risks we face in doing business internationally:
•health and safety concerns, including widespread outbreak of infectious diseases, such as Covid-19;
•changes in consumer demand resulting from variations in local economies;
•laws, rules, regulations and policies imposed by U.S. or foreign governments in areas such as data privacy, cybersecurity, antitrust and competition, tax, currency and banking, labor, and environmental;
•restrictive trade barriers considered or adopted by U.S. and foreign governments applicable to the semiconductor supply chain, including laws, rules, regulations and policies in areas such as national security, licensing requirements for exports, tariffs, customs and duties;
•laws, rules, regulations and policies within China and other countries that may favor domestic companies over non-domestic companies, including customer- or government-supported efforts to promote the development and growth of local competitors;
•the payment of dividends and other payments by non-U.S. subsidiaries may be subject to prohibitions, limitations or taxes in local jurisdictions;
•fluctuations in currency exchange rates, particularly the dollar/yen exchange rate for our operations in Japan;
•political and social conditions, and the potential for civil unrest, terrorism or other hostilities;
•disruptions or delays in shipments caused by customs brokers or government agencies;
•difficulties in attracting and retaining qualified personnel and managing foreign operations, including foreign labor disruptions;
•difficulty in enforcing contractual rights and protecting our intellectual property rights;
•potentially adverse tax consequences resulting from tax laws in the U.S. and in other jurisdictions; and
•local business and cultural factors that differ from our normal standards and practices, including business practices that we are prohibited from engaging in by the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and other anti-corruption laws and regulations.
We have significant facilities and other investments in South Korea, and there have been heightened security concerns in recent years stemming from North Korea’s nuclear weapon and long-range missile programs as well as its military actions in the region. Furthermore, there has been a history of conflict and tension within and among other countries in the region.
In addition, the Covid-19 pandemic has impacted and may continue to impact our operations and the operations of our customers and suppliers as a result of illness, quarantines, facility closures and travel and logistics restrictions in connection with the outbreak. For example, quarantine orders covering certain regions in the Philippines, including where our operations are located, have affected, and may in the future affect, our operations, and orders restricting movement in Malaysia temporarily forced us to pause operations as we obtained permission to resume operations in compliance with such orders. Other national, regional and local governments have implemented and may continue to implement similar restrictions to mitigate the spread of Covid-19 in jurisdictions in which we, our customers and our suppliers operate, and such restrictions may adversely impact our operations and the operations of our customers and suppliers. Such restrictions may also affect end-user demand in each geography where our customers sell their products and services, which may adversely affect demand for our services, our operating results and financial condition.
Competition - We Compete Against Established Competitors in the Packaging and Test Business as Well as Internal Capabilities of Integrated Device Manufacturers and Face Competition from New Competitors, Including Foundries.
The outsourced semiconductor packaging and test market is very competitive. We face substantial competition from established and emerging packaging and test service providers primarily located in Asia, including companies with significantly greater processing capacity, financial resources, local presence, research and development operations, marketing, technology and other capabilities. We also may face increased competition from domestic companies located in China, where there are government-supported efforts to promote the development and growth of the local semiconductor industry. We may be at a disadvantage in attempting to compete with entities associated with such government-supported initiatives based on their lower cost of capital, access to government resources and incentives, preferential sourcing practices, stronger local relationships or otherwise. Our competitors may also have established relationships, or enter into new strategic relationships, with one or more of the large semiconductor companies that are our current or potential customers, or key suppliers to these customers. Consolidation among our competitors could also strengthen their competitive position.
We also face competition from contract foundries, such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited and Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., which offer full turnkey services from silicon wafer fabrication through packaging and final test. These foundries, which are substantially larger than us and have greater financial resources than we do, have expanded their operations to include packaging and test services and may continue to expand these capabilities in the future. If a key customer decides to purchase wafers from a semiconductor foundry that provides packaging and test services, our business could be reduced if the customer also engages that foundry for related packaging and test services.
We cannot assure you that we will be able to compete successfully in the future against our existing or potential competitors or that our customers will not rely on internal sources or foundries for packaging and test services, or that our business, liquidity, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows will not be adversely affected by such increased competition.
Decisions by Our Integrated Device Manufacturer and Foundry Customers to Curtail Outsourcing May Adversely Affect Our Business.
Historically, we have been dependent on the trend in outsourcing of packaging and test services by IDM customers. Our IDM and foundry customers continually evaluate the need for outsourced services against their own in-house packaging and test services. As a result, at any time and for a variety of reasons, IDMs and foundries may decide to shift some or all of their outsourced packaging and test services to internally sourced capacity.
In addition, to the extent we limit capacity commitments for certain customers, these customers may increase their level of in-house packaging and test capabilities, which could make it more difficult for us to regain their business when we have available capacity.
If we experience a significant loss of IDM or foundry business, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, liquidity, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows, especially during a prolonged industry downturn.
Absence of Backlog - The Lack of Contractually Committed Customer Demand May Adversely Affect Our Sales.
Our packaging and test business does not typically operate with any material backlog. Our quarterly net sales from packaging and test services are substantially dependent upon our customers’ demand in that quarter. Generally, none of our customers have committed to purchase any significant amount of packaging or test services or to provide us with binding forecasts of demand for packaging and test services for any future period, in any material amount. In addition, we sometimes experience double booking by customers, and our customers often reduce, cancel or delay their purchases of packaging and test services for a variety of reasons including industry-wide, customer-specific and Amkor-specific reasons. This makes it difficult for us to forecast our capacity utilization and net sales in future periods. Since a large portion of our costs is fixed and our expense levels are based in part on our expectations of future sales, we may not be able to adjust costs in a timely manner to compensate for any sales shortfall. If we are unable to adjust costs in a timely manner, our margins, operating results, financial condition and cash flows would be adversely affected.
Capital Expenditures - We Make Substantial Investments in Equipment and Facilities to Support the Demand of Our Customers, Which May Adversely Affect Our Business if the Demand of Our Customers Does Not Develop as We Expect or Is Adversely Affected.
We make significant investments in equipment and facilities in order to service the demand of our customers. The amount of our capital expenditures depends on several factors, including the performance of our business, our assessment of future industry and customer demand, our capacity utilization levels and availability, advances in technology, our liquidity position and the availability of financing. Our ongoing capital expenditure requirements may strain our cash and short-term asset balances, and, in periods when we are expanding our capital base, we expect that depreciation expense and factory operating expenses associated with capital expenditures to increase production capacity will put downward pressure on our gross margin, at least in the near term. While we have completed the initial phases of construction of our factory and research and development facility in Incheon, Korea, there can be no assurance regarding when the facility will be fully utilized, or that the actual scope, costs, timeline or benefits of the project will be consistent with our expectations. From time to time, we also make significant capital expenditures based on specific business opportunities with one or a few key customers, and the additional equipment purchased may not be readily usable to support other customers. If demand is insufficient to fill our capacity, or we are unable to efficiently redeploy such equipment, our capacity utilization and gross margin could be negatively impacted. Our capital expenditures or cost per square foot may increase as we transition to new or more advanced packaging and test technologies because, among other reasons, new equipment used for these technologies is generally more expensive and often our existing equipment cannot be redeployed in whole or part for these technologies. To the extent this occurs in the future, our business, liquidity, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows could be materially adversely affected.
Furthermore, if we cannot generate or raise additional funds to pay for capital expenditures, particularly in some of the advanced packaging and bumping areas, as well as research and development activities, our growth and future profitability may be adversely affected. Our ability to obtain external financing in the future is subject to a variety of uncertainties, including: our future financial condition, results of operations and cash flows; general market conditions for financing; volatility in fixed income, credit and equity markets; and economic, political and other global conditions.
High Fixed Costs - Due to Our High Percentage of Fixed Costs, We Will Be Unable to Maintain Satisfactory Gross Margins if We Are Unable to Achieve Relatively High Capacity Utilization Rates.
Our operations are characterized by high fixed costs and the absence of any material backlog. Our profitability depends in part not only on pricing levels for our packaging and test services but also on the efficient utilization of our human resources and packaging and test equipment. Increases or decreases in our capacity utilization can significantly affect gross margins. Transitions between different packaging technologies can also impact our capacity utilization if we do not efficiently redeploy our equipment for other packaging and test opportunities. For example, in the past, the migration of some customer demand from wirebond to flip chip packages resulted in under-utilized wirebond assets which
negatively impacted our capacity utilization and gross margin. We cannot assure you that we will be able to achieve consistently high capacity utilization, and if we fail to do so, our gross margins will be negatively impacted.
In addition, our fixed operating costs have increased as a result of our efforts to expand our capacity through significant capital expenditures. Forecasted customer demand for which we have made capital investments may not materialize, and our sales may not adequately cover fixed costs, resulting in reduced profit levels or causing significant losses, either of which may adversely impact our business, liquidity, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows.
Dependence on Materials and Equipment Suppliers - Our Business May Suffer If the Cost, Quality or Supply of Materials or Equipment Changes Adversely Including Any Disruption that May Occur in the Supply of Certain Materials due to Regulations and Customer Requirements.
We obtain the materials and equipment required for the packaging and test services performed by our factories from various vendors. We source most of our materials, including critical materials such as leadframes, laminate substrates and gold wire, from a limited group of suppliers. A disruption to the operations of one or more of our suppliers could have a negative impact on our business. For example, the actions that government authorities and businesses worldwide have taken in response to Covid-19 have resulted in, to date, limited business disruption, including delays in shipments of equipment, supplies and other materials. To the extent the impact of Covid-19 continues or worsens, we may have greater difficulty obtaining the equipment, supplies and other materials necessary for performance of our services. Furthermore, severe earthquakes, flooding and tsunamis in the past have significantly and adversely affected the electronics industry supply chain by impacting the supply of specialty chemicals, substrates, silicon wafers, equipment and other supplies to the electronics industry.
In addition, we purchase the majority of our materials on a purchase order basis. Our business may be harmed if we cannot obtain materials and other supplies from our vendors in a timely manner, in sufficient quantities, at acceptable quality or at competitive prices. Some of our customers are also dependent on a limited number of suppliers for certain materials and silicon wafers. Shortages or disruptions in our customers’ supply channels could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. For example, the shortage in the supply of wafers to some of our customers in a prior year delayed or otherwise adversely impacted the demand for certain of our advanced packaging and test services.
SEC rules and related industry initiatives require diligence and disclosure regarding the use of certain minerals originating from the conflict zones of the Democratic Republic of Congo and adjoining countries. Many of our customers’ initiatives require us to certify that the covered materials we use in our packages do not come from the conflict areas. We incur costs associated with complying with these requirements and customer initiatives, and we may be required to increase our efforts in the future to cover additional materials and geographic areas. These requirements and customer initiatives could affect the pricing, sourcing and availability of materials used in the manufacture of semiconductor devices, and we cannot assure you that we will be able to obtain conflict-free materials or other materials covered by customer initiatives in sufficient quantities and at competitive prices or that we will be able to verify the origin of all of the materials we procure. If we are unable to meet these requirements and customer initiatives, it could adversely affect our business as some customers may move their business to other suppliers, and our reputation could also be adversely affected.
We purchase new packaging and test equipment to maintain and expand our operations. From time to time, increased demand for new equipment may cause lead times to extend beyond those normally required by equipment vendors. For example, in the past, increased demand for equipment caused some equipment suppliers to only partially satisfy our equipment orders in the normal time frame or to increase prices during market upturns for the semiconductor industry. The unavailability of equipment or failures to deliver equipment on a timely basis could delay or impair our ability to meet customer orders. If we are unable to meet customer orders, we could lose potential and existing customers. Generally, we acquire our equipment on a purchase order basis and do not enter into long-term equipment agreements. As a result, we could experience adverse changes in pricing, currency risk and potential shortages in equipment in a strong market, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.
We are a large buyer of gold and other commodity materials including substrates and copper. The prices of gold and other commodities used in our business fluctuate. Historically, we have been able to partially offset the effect of commodity price increases through price adjustments to some customers and changes in our product designs that reduce the material content and cost, such as the use of shorter, thinner, gold wire and migration to copper wire. However, we
typically do not have long-term contracts that permit us to impose price adjustments, and market conditions may limit our ability to do so. Significant price increases may adversely impact our gross margin in future periods to the extent we are unable to pass along past or future commodity price increases to our customers.
Declining Average Selling Prices - Historically There Has Been Downward Pressure on the Prices of Our Packaging and Test Services.
Prices for packaging and test services have generally declined over time, and sometimes prices can change significantly in relatively short periods of time. We expect downward pressure on average selling prices for our packaging and test services to continue in the future, and this pressure may intensify during downturns in business. If we are unable to offset a decline in average selling prices by developing and marketing new packages with higher prices, reducing our purchasing costs, recovering more of our material cost increases from our customers and reducing our manufacturing costs, our business, liquidity, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows could be materially adversely affected.
Packaging and Test Processes Are Complex and Our Production Yields and Customer Relationships May Suffer from Defects in the Services We Provide or if We Do Not Successfully Implement New Technologies.
Semiconductor packaging and test services are complex processes that require significant technological and process expertise, and in line with industry practice, customers usually require us to pass a lengthy and rigorous qualification process that may take several months. Once qualified and in production, defective packages primarily result from:
•contaminants in the manufacturing environment;
•human error;
•equipment malfunction;
•changing processes to address environmental requirements;
•defective raw materials; or
•defective plating services.
Test is also complex and involves sophisticated equipment and software. Similar to many software programs, these software programs are complex and may contain programming errors or “bugs.” The test equipment is also subject to malfunction, and the test process is subject to operator error.
These and other factors have, from time to time, contributed to lower production yields. They may also do so in the future, particularly as we adjust our capacity, change our processing steps or ramp new technologies. In addition, we must continue to develop and implement new packaging and test technologies and expand our offering of packages to be competitive. Our production yields on new packages, particularly those packages which are based on new technologies, typically are significantly lower than our production yields on our more established packages.
Our failure to qualify new processes, maintain quality standards or acceptable production yields, if significant and prolonged, could result in loss of customers, increased costs of production, delays, substantial amounts of returned goods and claims by customers relating thereto. Any of these problems could have a material adverse effect on our business, liquidity, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows.
Intellectual Property - Our Business Will Suffer if We Are Not Able to Develop New Proprietary Technology, Protect Our Proprietary Technology and Operate Without Infringing the Proprietary Rights of Others.
The complexity and breadth of semiconductor packaging, SiP modules and test services are rapidly increasing. As a result, we expect that we will need to develop, acquire and implement new manufacturing processes and packaging technologies and tools in order to respond to competitive industry conditions and customer requirements. Technological advances also typically lead to rapid and significant price erosion and may make our existing packages less competitive or our existing inventories obsolete. If we cannot achieve advances in packaging design or obtain access to advanced packaging designs developed by others, our business could suffer.
The need to develop and maintain advanced packaging capabilities and equipment could require significant research and development, capital expenditures and acquisitions in future years. In addition, converting to new packaging designs or process methodologies could result in delays in producing new package types, which could adversely affect our ability to meet customer orders and adversely impact our business.
The process of seeking patent protection takes a long time and is expensive. There can be no assurance that patents will issue from pending or future applications or that, if patents are issued, the rights granted under the patents will provide us with meaningful protection or any commercial advantage. Any patents we do obtain will eventually expire, may be challenged, invalidated or circumvented and may not provide us meaningful protection or other commercial advantage.
Some of our technologies are not covered by any patent or patent application. The confidentiality agreements on which we rely to protect these technologies may be breached and may not be adequate to protect our proprietary technologies. There can be no assurance that other countries in which we market our services will protect our intellectual property rights to the same extent as the U.S.
Our competitors may develop, patent or gain access to know-how and technology similar or superior to our own. In addition, many of our patents are subject to cross licenses, several of which are with our competitors. The semiconductor industry is characterized by frequent claims regarding the infringement of patent and other intellectual property rights. If any third party makes an enforceable infringement claim against us or our customers, we could be required to:
•discontinue the use of certain processes or cease to provide the services at issue, which could curtail our business;
•pay substantial damages;
•develop non-infringing technologies, which may not be feasible; or
•acquire licenses to such technology, which may not be available on commercially reasonable terms or at all.
We may need to enforce our patents or other intellectual property rights, including our rights under patent and intellectual property licenses with third parties, or defend ourselves against claimed infringement of the rights of others through litigation, which could result in substantial cost and diversion of our resources and may not be successful. Furthermore, if we fail to obtain necessary licenses, our business could suffer, and we could be exposed to claims for damages and injunctions from third parties, as well as claims from our customers for indemnification. In the past, we have been involved in legal proceedings involving the acquisition and license of intellectual property rights, the enforcement of our existing intellectual property rights or the enforcement of the intellectual property rights of others. Unfavorable outcomes in any legal proceedings involving intellectual property could result in significant liabilities or loss of commercial advantage and could have a material adverse effect on our business, liquidity, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows. The potential impact from the legal proceedings referred to in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q on our results of operations, financial condition and cash flows could change in the future.
We Face Warranty Claims, Product Return and Liability Risks, the Risk of Economic Damage Claims and the Risk of Negative Publicity if Our Packages Fail.
Our packages are incorporated into a number of end products, and our business is exposed to warranty claims, product return and liability risks, the risk of economic damage claims and the risk of negative publicity if our packages fail.
We receive warranty claims from our customers from time to time in the ordinary course of our business. If we were to experience an unusually high incidence of warranty claims, we could incur significant costs and our business could be adversely affected. In addition, we are exposed to the product and economic liability risks and the risk of negative publicity affecting our customers. Our sales may decline if any of our customers are sued on a product liability claim. We also may suffer a decline in sales from the negative publicity associated with such a lawsuit or with adverse public perceptions in general regarding our customers’ products. Further, if our packages are delivered with defects, we could incur additional development, repair or replacement costs or suffer other economic losses, and our credibility and the market’s acceptance of our packages could be harmed.
Covenants in the Indentures and Agreements Governing Our Current and Future Indebtedness Could Restrict Our Operating Flexibility.
The indentures and agreements governing our existing debt, and debt we may incur in the future, contain, or may contain, affirmative and negative covenants that materially limit our ability to take certain actions, including our ability to incur debt, pay dividends and repurchase stock, make certain investments and other payments, enter into certain mergers and consolidations, engage in sale leaseback transactions and encumber and dispose of assets. In addition, certain of our debt agreements contain, and our future debt agreements may contain, financial covenants and ratios.
The breach of any of these covenants by us, or the failure by us to meet any of the financial ratios or conditions, could result in a default under any or all of such indebtedness. If a default occurs under any such indebtedness, all of the outstanding obligations thereunder could become immediately due and payable, which could result in a default under our other outstanding debt and could lead to an acceleration of obligations related to other outstanding debt. The existence of such a default or event of default could also preclude us from borrowing funds under our revolving credit facilities. Our ability to comply with the provisions of the indentures, credit facilities and other agreements governing our outstanding debt and indebtedness we may incur in the future can be affected by events beyond our control, and a default under any debt instrument, if not cured or waived, could have a material adverse effect on us.
We may Decrease or Suspend our Quarterly Dividend, and Any Decrease in or Suspension of the Dividend Could Cause Our Stock Price to Decline.
We currently anticipate the payment of a regular quarterly cash dividend of $0.04 per share on our outstanding common stock. However, the payment, amount and timing of future cash dividends are subject to the final determination each quarter by our Board of Directors or a committee thereof that there are sufficient funds available to lawfully pay a dividend, that the dividend is compliant with the applicable restrictions in our debt agreements, and that the payment of the dividend remains in our best interests. The determination will be based on our results of operations, financial condition, cash requirements, debt restrictions and other factors. Given these considerations, we may increase or decrease the amount of the dividend at any time and may also decide to vary the timing of or suspend the payment of dividends in the future. Any decrease or suspension could cause our stock price to decline.
We Have Significant Severance Plan Obligations Associated with Our Manufacturing Operations in Korea Which Could Reduce Our Cash Flow and Negatively Impact Our Financial Condition.
Our subsidiary in Korea maintains an unfunded severance plan, under which we have an accrued liability of $119.1 million as of September 30, 2020. The plan covers certain employees that were employed prior to August 1, 2015. In the event of a significant layoff or other reduction in our labor force in Korea, our subsidiary in Korea would be required to make lump-sum severance payments under the plan, which could have a material adverse effect on our liquidity, financial condition and cash flows. In October 2020, some employees accepted our offer to convert their Korean severance plan participation to a defined contribution plan. From time to time, we may offer additional employees the option to convert from the severance plan to the defined contribution plan, which could impact the timing of future payments, reducing our cash flow and negatively affecting our financial condition.
Mr. James J. Kim and Members of His Family Can Effectively Determine or Substantially Influence the Outcome of All Matters Requiring Stockholder Approval.
As of September 30, 2020, Mr. James J. Kim, the Executive Chairman of our Board of Directors, Ms. Susan Y. Kim, the Vice Chairman of our Board of Directors, and members of the Kim family and affiliates owned approximately 141.7 million shares, or approximately 58%, of our outstanding common stock. The Kim family also has options to acquire approximately 0.5 million shares. If the options are exercised, the Kim family’s total ownership would be an aggregate of approximately 142.2 million shares of our outstanding common stock or approximately 59% of our outstanding common stock.
In June 2013, the Kim family exchanged convertible notes issued by Amkor in 2009 for approximately 49.6 million shares of common stock (the “Convert Shares”). The Convert Shares are subject to a voting agreement. The voting agreement requires the Kim family to vote these shares in a “neutral manner” on all matters submitted to our stockholders for a vote, so that such Convert Shares are voted in the same proportion as all of the other outstanding securities (excluding the other shares owned by the Kim family) that are actually voted on a proposal submitted to
Amkor’s stockholders for approval. The Kim family is not required to vote in a “neutral manner” any Convert Shares that, when aggregated with all other voting shares held by the Kim family, represent 41.6% or less of the total then-outstanding voting shares of our common stock. The voting agreement for the Convert Shares terminates upon the earliest of (i) such time as the Kim family no longer beneficially owns any of the Convert Shares, (ii) consummation of a change of control (as defined in the voting agreement) or (iii) the mutual agreement of the Kim family and Amkor.
Mr. James J. Kim and his family and affiliates, acting together, have the ability to effectively determine or substantially influence matters submitted for approval by our stockholders by voting their shares or otherwise acting by written consent, including the election of our Board of Directors. There is also the potential, through the election of members of our Board of Directors, that the Kim family could substantially influence matters decided upon by our Board of Directors. This concentration of ownership may also have the effect of impeding a merger, consolidation, takeover or other business consolidation involving us, or discouraging a potential acquirer from making a tender offer for our shares, and could also negatively affect our stock’s market price or decrease any premium over market price that an acquirer might otherwise pay. Concentration of ownership also reduces the public float of our common stock. There may be less liquidity and higher price volatility for the stock of companies with a smaller public float compared to companies with broader public ownership. Also, the sale or the prospect of the sale of a substantial portion of the Kim family shares may adversely affect the market price of our stock.
General Risk Factors
The Covid-19 Outbreak Has Impacted and May Continue to Impact the Supply Chain and Consumer Demand for Our Customers’ Products and Services, Which May Adversely Affect Our Business, Results of Operations, and Financial Condition.
Our business has been and may continue to be adversely impacted by the effects of the Covid-19 outbreak. The impacts have varied, and likely will continue to vary, by location, by industry and by end market. We, our suppliers and our customers have been and may continue to be disrupted by worker illness and absenteeism, quarantines and restrictions on employees’ ability to work, office and factory closures, disruptions to ports and other shipping infrastructure and border closures or other travel or health-related restrictions. There is considerable uncertainty regarding such restrictions and potential future governmental restrictions. Restrictions on our workforce or access to our manufacturing facilities, or similar limitations for our suppliers, or restrictions or disruptions of transportation, such as reduced availability of air transport, port closures, and increased border controls, could limit our capacity to meet customer demand and have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. Such restrictions and efforts to contain the spread of Covid-19 have caused and may continue to cause disruptions to our supply chain in connection with the sourcing of equipment, supplies and other materials. The resumption of normal business operations after any such restrictions are lifted may be delayed or constrained by lingering effects of Covid-19 on our suppliers or customers or both.
The Covid-19 pandemic has adversely affected and may continue to adversely affect the economies and financial markets of many countries, resulting in an economic downturn that may cause a decrease in short-term and long-term consumer demand for our customers’ products and services and impact our operating results. Demand for our products and services for the automotive end market has experienced the most significant impact to date, and there is no certainty as to when demand in that market will return to pre-Covid-19 levels.
The spread of Covid-19 has caused us to modify our business practices (including corporate hygiene protocols at factories, restricting employee travel and employee work locations and cancelling physical participation in meetings, events and conferences), and we may take further actions as may be required by government authorities or that we determine to be in the best interests of our employees, customers and suppliers. There is no certainty that such measures will be sufficient to mitigate the current or future impacts of Covid-19, and our ability to perform critical functions could be harmed.
At this time, we are unable to predict the future impacts that Covid-19 will have on our business, financial condition or results of operations due to various uncertainties, including the ultimate spread of Covid-19, the severity of Covid-19, the duration of the outbreak, and the actions that may be taken by governmental authorities and other businesses in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Fluctuations in Operating Results and Cash Flows - Our Operating Results and Cash Flows Have Varied and May Vary Significantly as a Result of Factors That We Cannot Control.
Many factors could have a material adverse effect on our net sales, gross profit, operating results and cash flows or lead to significant variability of quarterly or annual operating results. Our profitability and ability to generate cash from operations is principally dependent upon demand for semiconductors, the utilization of our capacity, semiconductor package mix, the average selling price of our services, our ability to manage our capital expenditures and our ability to control our costs including labor, material, overhead and financing costs.
Our net sales, gross margin, gross profit, operating income and cash flows have historically fluctuated significantly from quarter to quarter as a result of many of the following factors, over which we have little or no control and which we expect to continue to impact our business:
•fluctuation in demand for semiconductors and conditions in the semiconductor industry generally, as well as by specific customers, such as inventory reductions by our customers impacting demand in key markets;
•our ability to achieve our major growth objectives, including transitioning second-wave customers to advanced packages and increasing our share of the automotive end market;
•changes in our capacity and capacity utilization rates;
•changes in average selling prices which can occur quickly due to the absence of long-term agreements on price;
•changes in the mix of the semiconductor packaging and test services that we sell;
•fluctuations in our manufacturing yields;
•the development, transition and ramp to high volume manufacture of more advanced silicon nodes and evolving wafer, packaging and test technologies may cause production delays, lower manufacturing yields and supply constraints for new wafers and other materials;
•absence of backlog, the short-term nature of our customers’ commitments, double bookings by customers and deterioration in customer forecasts and the impact of these factors, including the possible delay, rescheduling and cancellation of large orders, or the timing and volume of orders relative to our production capacity;
•changes in costs, quality, availability and delivery times of raw materials, components, equipment and labor;
•wage inflation and fluctuations in commodity prices, including gold, copper and other precious metals;
•the timing of expenditures in anticipation of future orders;
•changes in effective tax rates;
•the availability and cost of financing;
•leverage and debt covenants;
•intellectual property transactions and disputes;
•warranty and product liability claims and the impact of quality excursions and customer disputes and returns;
•costs associated with legal claims, indemnification obligations, judgments and settlements;
•political instability and government shutdowns, civil disturbances or international events, such as the United Kingdom’s departure from the European Union;
•environmental or natural disasters such as earthquakes, typhoons and volcanic eruptions;
•pandemics or other illnesses that may impact our labor force, operations, liquidity, supply chain and end-user demand for products which incorporate semiconductors, such as the Covid-19 pandemic;
•costs of acquisitions and divestitures and difficulties integrating acquisitions;
•our ability to attract and retain qualified personnel to support our global operations;
•fluctuations in interest rates and currency exchange rates, including the potential impact of the phase-out of LIBOR on our variable rate debt;
•our ability to penetrate new end markets or expand our business in existing end markets;
•dependence on key customers or concentration of customers in certain end markets, such as mobile communications and automotive; and
•restructuring charges, asset write-offs and impairments.
These factors may have a material and adverse effect on our business, liquidity, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows or lead to significant variability of quarterly or annual operating results. In addition, these factors may adversely affect our credit ratings, which could make it more difficult and expensive for us to raise capital and could adversely affect the price of our securities.
Our Substantial Indebtedness Could Adversely Affect Our Financial Condition and Prevent Us from Fulfilling Our Obligations.
We have a significant amount of indebtedness, and the terms of the agreements governing our indebtedness allow us and our subsidiaries to incur more debt, subject to certain limitations. As of September 30, 2020, our total debt balance was $1,319.1 million, of which $136.5 million was classified as a current liability and $615.1 million was collateralized indebtedness at our subsidiaries. We may consider investments in joint ventures, increased capital expenditures, refinancings or acquisitions which may increase our indebtedness. If new debt is added to our consolidated debt level, the related risks that we face could intensify.
Our substantial indebtedness could:
•make it more difficult for us to satisfy our obligations with respect to our indebtedness, including our obligations under our indentures to purchase notes tendered as a result of a change in control of Amkor;
•increase our vulnerability to general adverse economic and industry conditions;
•limit our ability to fund future working capital, capital expenditures, research and development and other business opportunities, including joint ventures and acquisitions;
•require us to dedicate a substantial portion of our cash flow from operations to service payments of interest and principal on our debt, thereby reducing the availability of our cash flow to fund future working capital, capital expenditures, research and development expenditures and other general corporate requirements;
•increase the volatility of the price of our common stock;
•limit our flexibility to react to changes in our business and the industry in which we operate;
•place us at a competitive disadvantage to any of our competitors that have less debt;
•limit, along with the financial and other covenants in our indebtedness, our ability to borrow additional funds;
•limit our ability to refinance our existing indebtedness, particularly during periods of adverse credit market conditions when refinancing indebtedness may not be available under interest rates and other terms acceptable to us or at all; and
•increase our cost of borrowing.
In addition, certain of our credit agreements use LIBOR or other reference rates to determine the rate of interest payable on our borrowings. As such, our financial position may be adversely affected by fluctuations in such reference rates based on economic and market factors beyond our control. Any significant increase in such reference rates would result
in a significant increase in interest expense on our debt, which could negatively impact our results of operations and cash flows. In addition, the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority intends to phase out LIBOR by the end of 2021. Plans for alternative reference rates for other currencies have also been announced. At this time, we cannot predict how markets will respond to proposed alternative rates or the effect of any changes to, or discontinuation of, LIBOR. If reference rates under our credit agreements are no longer available or if our lenders have increased costs due to changes in reference rates, we may experience increases in interest rates on our variable rate debt, which could adversely impact our interest expense, results of operations and cash flows.
We Are Exposed to Fluctuations in Interest Rates and Changes in Credit Risk Which Could Have a Material Adverse Impact on Our Earnings as it Relates to the Market Value of Our Investment Portfolio.
We maintain an investment portfolio of various holdings, types, and maturities. Our portfolio includes available-for-sale debt investments, the values of which are subject to market price volatility resulting from interest rate movements, changes in credit risk and financial market conditions. If such investments suffer market price declines, we may recognize in earnings the decline in the fair value of our investments below their cost basis when the decline is judged to be an impairment, including an allowance for credit loss.
We May Have Difficulty Funding Liquidity Needs.
We assess our liquidity based on our current expectations regarding sales and operating expenses, capital spending, dividend payments and stock repurchases, debt service requirements and other funding needs. We fund our operations, including capital expenditures and other investments and servicing principal and interest obligations with respect to our debt, from cash flows from our operations, existing cash and cash equivalents, borrowings under available debt facilities, or proceeds from any additional debt or equity financing. Our liquidity is affected by, among other factors, volatility in the global economy and credit markets, the performance of our business, our capital expenditure and other investment levels, other uses of our cash including any payment of dividends and purchases of stock under our stock repurchase program, any acquisitions or investments in joint ventures and our ability to either repay debt and other long-term obligations out of our operating cash flows or refinance debt at or prior to maturity with the proceeds of debt or equity financings.
Servicing our current and future customers requires that we incur significant operating expenses and continue to make significant capital expenditures and other investments, and the amount of our capital expenditures for 2020 and thereafter may vary materially and will depend on several factors. These factors include, among others, the amount, timing and implementation of our capital projects, the performance of our business, economic and market conditions, advances in technology, the cash needs and investment opportunities for the business, the need for additional capacity and facilities and the availability of cash flows from operations or financing.
The health of the worldwide banking system and capital markets affects our liquidity. If financial institutions that have extended credit commitments to us are adversely affected by the conditions of the U.S., foreign or international banking system and capital markets, they may refuse or be unable to fund borrowings under their credit commitments to us. Volatility in the banking system and capital markets, as well as any increase in interest rates or adverse economic, political, public health or other global conditions, could also make it difficult or more expensive for us to maintain our existing credit facilities or refinance our debt.
The trading price of our common stock has been, and is likely to continue to be, highly volatile and could be subject to wide fluctuations. Such fluctuations could impact our decision or ability to utilize the equity markets as a potential source of our funding needs in the future.
In addition, there is a risk that we could fail to generate the necessary net income or operating cash flows to meet the funding needs of our business due to a variety of factors, including the other factors discussed in this “Risk Factors” section. If we fail to generate the necessary cash flows or we are unable to access the capital markets when needed, our liquidity would be adversely impacted.
Customer Concentration and Loss of Customers - The Loss of Certain Customers or Reduced Orders or Pricing from Existing Customers May Have a Significant Adverse Effect on Our Operations and Financial Results.
We have derived and expect to continue to derive a large portion of our revenues from a small group of customers during any particular period due in part to the concentration of market share in the semiconductor industry. Our ten largest
customers together accounted for 63% of our net sales for the year ended December 31, 2019, and we expect that percentage to increase for the year ending December 31, 2020. In addition, we have significant customer concentration within our end markets. The loss of a significant customer, a business combination among our customers, a reduction in orders or decrease in price from a significant customer or disruption in any of our significant strategic partnerships or other commercial arrangements may result in a decline in our sales and profitability and could have a material adverse effect on our business, liquidity, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows.
The demand for our services from each customer is directly dependent upon that customer’s financial health, level of business activity and purchasing decisions, the quality and price of our services, our cycle time and delivery performance, the customer’s qualification of additional competitors on products we package or test and a number of other factors. Each of these factors could vary significantly from time to time resulting in the loss or reduction of customer orders, and we cannot assure you that our key customers or any other customers will continue to place orders with us in the future at the same levels as in past periods.
For example, as seen in the automotive end market, the Covid-19 pandemic and restrictions imposed by governmental authorities to mitigate the spread of Covid-19 in our customers’ end markets may decrease demand for our customers’ products and services, impacting their financial health and their demand for our services.
In addition, from time to time we may acquire or build new facilities or migrate existing business among our facilities. In connection with these facility changes, our customers require us to qualify the new facilities even though we have already qualified to perform the services at our other facilities. We cannot assure that we will successfully qualify new facilities or that our customers will not qualify our competitors and move the business for such services.
We Face Risks Trying to Attract, Retain or Replace Qualified Employees to Support Our Operations.
Our success depends to a significant extent upon the continued service of our key senior management, sales and technical personnel, any of whom may be difficult to replace. Competition for qualified employees is intense, and our business could be adversely affected by the loss of the services of any of our existing key personnel, including senior management, as a result of competition or for any other reason. Other than the agreement with our Chief Executive Officer, we do not have employment agreements with our key employees, including senior management, or other contracts that would prevent our key employees from working for our competitors in the event they cease working for us. We cannot assure you that we will be successful in our efforts to retain or replace key employees or in hiring and properly training sufficient numbers of qualified personnel and in effectively managing our growth. Our inability to attract, retain, motivate and train qualified new personnel could have a material adverse effect on our business.
If We Fail to Maintain an Effective System of Internal Controls, We May Not be Able to Accurately Report Financial Results or Prevent Fraud.
Our internal controls over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements because of their inherent limitations, including the possibility of human error, the circumvention or overriding of controls, fraud or corruption. Therefore, even effective internal controls can provide only reasonable assurance with respect to the preparation and fair presentation of financial statements. In addition, projections concerning the effectiveness of internal controls in future periods are subject to the risk that our internal controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with our policies or procedures may deteriorate.
We assess our internal controls and systems on an ongoing basis, and from time-to-time, we update and make modifications to our global enterprise resource planning system. We have implemented several significant enterprise resource planning modules and expect to implement additional enterprise resource planning modules in the future. In addition, we have implemented new shop floor management systems in certain of our factories. There is a risk that deficiencies may occur that could constitute significant deficiencies or, in the aggregate, a material weakness.
If we fail to remedy any deficiencies or maintain the adequacy of our internal controls, we could be subject to regulatory scrutiny, civil or criminal penalties or shareholder litigation. In addition, failure to maintain adequate internal controls could result in financial statements that do not accurately reflect our operating results or financial condition.
We Face Risks in Connection with the Continuing Development and Implementation of Changes to, and Maintenance and Security of, Our Information Technology Systems.
We depend on our information technology systems for many aspects of our business. Our systems may be susceptible to damage, disruptions or shutdowns due to failures during the process of upgrading, replacing or maintaining software, databases or components thereof, power outages, hardware failures, interruption or failures of third-party provider systems, computer viruses, attacks by computer hackers, telecommunication failures, user errors, malfeasance or catastrophic events. Cybersecurity breaches could result in unauthorized disclosure of confidential information or disruptions to our operations. The IT systems in our factories are at varying levels of sophistication and maturity as the factories have different sets of products, processes and customer expectations. Some of our key software has been developed by our own programmers, and this software may not be easily integrated with other software and systems. From time to time we make additions or changes to our information technology systems. For example, we are integrating our Japan operations’ information technology systems with our existing systems and processes, and such integration has inherent risks to existing operations. In addition, in May 2017, we completed our acquisition of Nanium and continue to integrate its information technology systems into our existing systems and processes. We face risks in connection with current and future projects to install or integrate new information technology systems or upgrade our existing systems. These risks include:
•delays in the design and implementation of the system;
•costs may exceed our plans and expectations; and
•disruptions resulting from the implementation, integration or cybersecurity breach of the systems may impact our ability to process transactions and delay shipments to customers, impact our results of operations or financial condition or harm our control environment.
Our business could be materially and adversely affected if our information technology systems are disrupted or if we are unable to successfully install new systems or improve, upgrade, integrate or expand upon our existing systems.
Difficulties Consolidating and Integrating Our Operations - We Face Challenges as We Integrate Diverse Operations.
We have experienced, and expect to continue to experience, change in the scope and complexity of our operations resulting primarily from existing and future facility and operational consolidations, facility and operational expansions, strategic acquisitions, joint ventures and other partnering arrangements. Some of the risks from these activities include those associated with the following:
•increasing the scope, geographic diversity and complexity of our operations;
•conforming an acquired company’s standards, practices, systems and controls with our operations;
•increasing complexity from combining recent acquisitions of an acquired business;
•unexpected losses of key employees or customers of an acquired business;
•difficulties in the assimilation of acquired operations, technologies or products; and
•diversion of management and other resources from other parts of our operations and adverse effects on existing business relationships with customers.
In connection with these activities, we may:
•incur costs associated with personnel reductions and voluntary retirement programs;
•record restructuring charges to cover costs associated with facility consolidations and related cost reduction initiatives;
•use a significant portion of our available cash;
•incur substantial debt;
•issue equity securities, which may dilute the ownership of current stockholders;
•incur or assume known or unknown contingent liabilities; and
•incur large, immediate accounting write offs and face antitrust or other regulatory inquiries or actions.
For example, the businesses we have acquired had, at the time of acquisition, multiple systems for managing their own production, sales, inventory and other operations. Migrating these businesses to our systems typically is a slow, expensive process requiring us to divert significant resources from other parts of our operations. We may continue to face these challenges in the future. As a result of the risks discussed above, the anticipated benefits of these or other future acquisitions, consolidations and partnering arrangements may not be fully realized, if at all, and these activities could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We Could Suffer Adverse Tax and Other Financial Consequences if There Are Changes in Tax Laws or Taxing Authorities Do Not Agree with Our Interpretation of Applicable Tax Laws, Including Whether We Continue to Qualify for Tax Holidays, or if We Are Required to Establish or Adjust Valuation Allowances on Deferred Tax Assets.
We earn a substantial portion of our income in foreign countries, and our operations are subject to tax in multiple jurisdictions with complicated and varied tax regimes. Tax laws and income tax rates in these jurisdictions are subject to change due to economic and political conditions. Changes in U.S. or foreign tax laws, including new or modified guidance with respect to existing tax laws (particularly the Tax Act, which made significant changes to the U.S. tax code with respect to which there remains uncertainty), could have a material adverse impact on our liquidity, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows.
Our tax liabilities are based, in part, on our corporate structure, interpretations of various U.S. and foreign tax laws, including withholding tax, compliance with tax holiday requirements, application of changes in tax law to our operations and other relevant laws of applicable taxing jurisdictions. From time to time, taxing authorities conduct examinations of our income tax returns and other regulatory filings. We cannot assure you that the taxing authorities will agree with our interpretations, including whether we continue to qualify for tax holidays. If they do not agree, we may seek to enter into settlements with the taxing authorities. We may also appeal a taxing authority’s determination to the appropriate governmental authorities, but we cannot be sure we will prevail. If we do not prevail or if we enter into settlements with taxing authorities, we may have to make significant payments or otherwise record charges (or reduce tax assets) that adversely affect our results of operations, financial condition and cash flows. Additionally, certain of our subsidiaries operate under tax holidays, which will expire in whole or in part at various dates in the future. As those tax holidays expire, we expect that our tax expense will increase as income from those jurisdictions becomes subject to higher statutory income tax rates, thereby reducing our liquidity and cash flow.
We monitor on an ongoing basis our ability to utilize our deferred tax assets and whether there is a need for a related valuation allowance. In evaluating our ability to recover our deferred tax assets, in the jurisdiction from which they arise, we consider all available positive and negative evidence, including scheduled reversals of deferred tax liabilities, projected future taxable income, tax-planning strategies and results of recent operations. For most of our foreign deferred tax assets, we believe that we will have sufficient taxable income to allow us to realize these deferred tax assets. In the event taxable income falls short of current expectations, we may need to establish a valuation allowance against such deferred tax assets that, if required, could materially affect our results of operations.
Environmental, Health & Safety Laws and Industry and Customer Initiatives - Future Environmental, Health & Safety Laws and Industry and Customer Sustainability Initiatives Could Place Additional Burdens on Our Manufacturing Operations.
Environmental, health and safety laws and regulations in places we do business impose various controls on the use, storage, handling, discharge and disposal of chemicals used or generated in, or emitted by, our production processes, on the factories we occupy and on the materials contained in semiconductor products. For example, at our foreign facilities we produce liquid waste when semiconductor wafers are diced into chips with the aid of diamond saws, then cooled with running water. In addition, semiconductor packages have historically utilized metallic alloys containing lead (Pb) within the interconnect terminals typically referred to as leads, pins or balls, and the European Union’s Restriction of Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment directive and similar laws in other jurisdictions, including China, impose strict restrictions on the placement into the market of electrical and electronic equipment containing lead and
certain other hazardous substances. We may become liable under these and other environmental, health and safety laws and regulations, including for the cost of compliance and cleanup of any disposal or release of hazardous materials arising out of our former or current operations, or otherwise as a result of the emission of greenhouse gasses or other chemicals, the existence of hazardous materials on our properties or the existence of hazardous substances in the products for which we perform our services. We could also be held liable for damages, including fines, penalties and the cost of investigations and remedial actions, we could be subject to revocation of permits negatively affecting our ability to maintain or expand our operations, and we could suffer reputational harm.
There has also been an increase in public attention and industry and customer focus on the materials contained in semiconductor products, the environmental impact of semiconductor operations and the risk of chemical releases from such operations, climate change, sustainability and related environmental concerns. This increased focus on sustainability and the environmental impact of semiconductor operations and products has caused industry groups and customers to impose additional requirements on us and our suppliers, sometimes exceeding regulatory standards. These industry and customer requirements include increased tracking and reporting of greenhouse gas emissions, reductions in waste and wastewater from operations, additional reporting on the materials and components used in the products for which we perform our services, and the use of renewable energy sources in our factory operations. To comply with these additional requirements, we may need to procure additional equipment or make factory or process changes and our operating costs may increase.
Our Business and Financial Condition Could be Adversely Affected by Natural Disasters and Other Calamities, Health Conditions or Pandemics, Political Instability, Hostilities, or Other Disruptions.
We have significant packaging and test and other operations in China, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Portugal, Singapore and Taiwan which are or could be subject to: natural disasters, such as earthquakes, tsunamis, typhoons, floods, droughts, volcanoes and other severe weather and geological events, and other calamities, such as fire; the outbreak of infectious diseases (such as Covid-19 and other coronaviruses, Ebola or flu); industrial strikes; government imposed travel restrictions or quarantines; breakdowns of equipment; difficulties or delays in obtaining materials, equipment, utilities and services; political events or instability; acts of war, armed conflict, terrorist incidents and other hostilities in regions where we have facilities; and industrial accidents and other events, that could disrupt or even shutdown our operations. For example, in April 2016, our Kumamoto factory was damaged by earthquakes in Japan. As a result of these earthquakes, our sales were reduced due to the temporary disruption in operations, and we incurred earthquake related costs for damaged inventory, buildings and equipment. Our suppliers and customers also have significant operations in such locations, and this could compound the effect of any such disruption. In the event of such a disruption or shutdown, we may be unable to reallocate production to other facilities in a timely or cost-effective manner (if at all), and we may not have sufficient capacity, or customer approval, to service customer demands in our other facilities. A natural disaster or other calamity, political instability, the occurrence of hostilities or other event that results in a prolonged disruption to our operations, or the operations of our customers or suppliers, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
In addition, some of the processes that we utilize in our operations place us at risk of fire and other damage. For example, highly flammable gases are used in the preparation of wafers holding semiconductor devices for flip chip packaging.
We maintain insurance policies for various types of property, casualty and other risks, but we do not carry insurance for all the above referred risks. With regard to the insurance we do maintain, we cannot assure you that it would be sufficient to cover all of our potential losses. As a result, our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be adversely affected by natural disasters and other calamities.