The route is not new and the manifest is not forged. The customs category is simply different.
Reporting in The Information, re-reported by Chosun Biz, describes packaging plants in South Korea bonding Samsung and SK hynix high-bandwidth memory onto the same substrate as cheap, low-performance server processors. The board is declared as a processor, not as memory.
US rules assess the computing capability of a whole package, and the paperwork places the server processor as the item being measured. The memory above it is never the subject of the licence check.
The cost of unwrapping it
The package still has to be taken apart in China. Technicians heat it until the solder reflows, lift the stack off and discard the processor. Overheating warps or cracks the stack, so recovered stock is uneven.
A broker told The Information that one HBM3E part that sold for a few hundred dollars a year ago now trades near $4,000 in China. An AI accelerator needs six to eight stacks, so memory alone runs $24,000 to $32,000 per chip.
A supply chain source said Huawei has told some customers that a substantial share of that Korean memory will go into its Ascend 960DT, due in the first quarter of 2027. After losing legitimate access, Huawei began telling clients to secure their own.
Why the loophole is closing
More operators now use the same packaging partners, and a smuggler who long bought from Korea said the odds of being caught have risen. He plans to sell most of his equity next year.
Samsung and SK hynix together hold more than 80 percent of HBM supply and Chinese domestic output remains minimal, which is why a declaration line carries so much value.
