Japan Protests New China Chip Measures 09/08 06:43

   

   BANGKOK (AP) -- Japan has protested against Chinese controls that will limit 
its exports of a key chemical used to make computer chips, saying Tuesday that 
Tokyo is studying the potential impact on Japanese companies.

   China imposed the curb on imports of dichlorosilane from Japan, saying its 
exports of the material, also known as DCS, have violated anti-dumping 
regulations and harmed China's domestic industry.

   Beginning Tuesday, companies importing the chemical compound from Japan must 
provide cash deposits to China's customs at rates of up to 99.2%. The measure 
applies to Shin-Etsu Chemical and Denal Silane, among other Japanese exporters 
of DCS.

   Beijing says the measure is provisional as an investigation continues. A 
final ruling will come later.

   Relations between China and Japan have been strained since November, when 
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi angered Beijing by suggesting Japan's 
military could intervene if China used military force on Taiwan, a self-ruled 
island Beijing claims as its territory.

   In Tokyo, Japan's top government spokesperson, Chief Cabinet Secretary 
Minoru Kihara, protested against the controls and said Tokyo would "respond 
appropriately" to avoid unfair harm to Japanese companies.

   China's commerce ministry launched its anti-dumping probe into Japanese DCS 
as part of various measures against Japan. Beijing has also imposed export 
controls on Japanese firms for dual-use items that can be used for military 
purposes.

   DCS is used in a chemical vapor process to put thin layers of silicon, 
oxide, or other films in semiconductor logic and memory chips. The global 
market for DCS is highly competitive, but Japan is the leading producer of 
ultrapure DCS for computer chip fabrication.