Hynix Semiconductor Inc. condemned a call made by Elpida Memory Inc. and Micron Japan Ltd. for a countervailing duty to be imposed on Hynix DRAMs made in Korea and imported into Japan.
In robust language Hynix defended its position and described any levying of duties on its DRAMs by the Japanese government as "hypocritical" and a potential source of anti-Japanese emotion and "social and diplomatic troubles".
Regarding the issue of Hynix debt restructuring, which Hynix described as a key basis of the petition, Hynix officials commented: "the creditors simply made commercially reasonable decisions based on objective data and information available. Indeed, Hynix's Korean creditors acted no differently than foreign creditors facing the same choices."
Hynix officials added that an investigation at this time was unwarranted because the market for DRAMs had improved and that the legitimacy of the imposition of countervailing duties by the United States and European Union was being reviewed by the World Trade Organization.
"It is simply inappropriate to begin a new CVD investigation now, when the same actions by other countries have been challenged in the WTO by Korea and are likely to be found legally defective soon," Hynix said in a statement.
Hynix said the call from Elpida and Micron was an attempt to harass Hynix, which had supported the Japan's electronics equipment industry by providing DRAMs.
Hynix went on to argue that, because the Japanese government has supported weak domestic banks to stabilize its financial sector, the allegations of illegal subsidy that had been raised against Hynix could also apply to Japanese companies.
"It therefore makes little sense for Japan to find a subsidy from this investigation, since it would be extremely hypocritical for Japan to criticize Korea for taking the same actions as Japan," Hynix said. Hynix added that the imposition of countervailing duties on Hynix DRAMs, therefore, would cause damage to Japan's DRAM-consuming industries by worsening the supply-demand imbalance.
Finally, Hynix argued that the imposition of countervailing duties by the Japanese government might stimulate anti-Japanese emotion in Japan and cause "social and diplomatic troubles".
Hynix said that if tariffs were imposed it would, in any case, have little effect.
