Hynix welcomes WTO ruling against Japanese duties

0 Comments | AFP, November, 2007

SEOUL (AFP) — South Korea's Hynix Semiconductor on Thursday welcomed the World Trade Organisation's ruling that Japan's punitive tariffs on imports of its semiconductors are illegal under international trade rules.

Japan imposed 27.2 percent tariffs in January 2006 on dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chips produced by the world's second largest memory chipmaker.

Japan accused Hynix of selling subsidised products while South Korea insisted the duties breached world trade rules.

The WTO's appellate body made its ruling Wednesday.

"We will ask Japan to accept the WTO's ruling. If our request is rejected, Japanese firms may face retaliatory measures in South Korea," Hynix spokeswoman Kim Ah-Young told AFP.

The firm said it expects the ruling...