How Samsung became the worlds No. 2 advanced chipmaker and set the stage for a U.S. manufacturing boom
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Samsung's brand is everywhere. From Galaxy phones and smart TVs to washing machines and refrigerators, the company says its products can be found in nearly three-quarters of U.S. households.
But Samsung is much more than gadgets and appliances, and there's another reason why it's one of the world's most valuable companies. It's the second-biggest maker of chips that are powering so many popular devices.
For more than three decades, Samsung has been a leader in memory chips, which are used for digital data storage. But that's been a market in turmoil. Over the last year, prices for memory chips have taken a dive, and they're expected to fall up to 23% more in the current quarter. In April, Samsung reported dismal earnings for the first quarter, with profit plunging to its lowest level since 2009.
