Tariff on Japan Computer Chips

The U.S. International Trade Commission, by a 4-2 vote, today imposed stiff tariffs on imports of a type of Japanese computer memory chip that is a major component in computers and communications equipment.

The decision upheld an earlier ruling by the Commerce Department that Japanese firms were “dumping” the chips, 64K dynamic random access memory chips, in this country at below-fair-value prices. The action, a major development in U.S.-Japanese trade, was the first final U.S. action in placing tariffs on Japanese semiconductors. Two other cases on more sophisticated Japanese semiconductor imports are still pending.