JAPAN MOVES TO TIGHTEN CHIP-EXPORT CURBS
The Ministry of International Trade and
Industry (MITI) acted to tighten restrictions on microchip
exports to countries other than the U.S. To preserve a
U.S.-Japan pact on semiconductor trade, but major Japanese
chipmakers doubt its usefulness.
    A MITI spokesman said his ministry had asked chipmakers to
issue certificates to specified trading houses stating they are
authorised exporters.
    Trading houses applying for a MITI export licence will be
required to show such a certificate, but those without it will
not automatically be denied licences, he said.
    But some industry officials predicted any government
measures were likely to have limited effect as long as the
world semiconductor market remained weak.
    U.S. Government and industry officials have complained
repeatedly that Japanese chipmakers continue to sell at below
cost to third countries despite the July agreement.
    Japanese firms and officials in turn argue the flow of
cheap chips to third countries is due to grey-market sales by
third-party brokers, who seek to profit from the gap between
low prices in Japan and higher prices based on production costs
and set for Japanese makers under the agreement.
    The MITI spokesman said, "If the percentage of grey market
is increasing for one specific company, it suggests they are
distributing their products through their sales network knowing
they will be exported by some means. In that case we will ask
them what they are doing to reduce the figure."
    MITI earlier asked makers to cut output of certain chips by
10 pct in first-quarter 1987, spokesmen for the firms said.
    But they doubt the usefulness of the latest move. "As long
as there is a gap between prices set under the pact and market
prices, there will be people who want to exploit the gap to
make money," a Hitachi Ltd <HIT.T> spokesman said.
 REUTER
