WTO investigates Korea's DRAM complaint

In December 1998, the World Trade Organization (WTO) ordered the United

States to lift tariffs it had imposed since 1993 on imported Korean DRAM memory

chips. This week, the WTO said it is looking into charges made by Korean

chipmakers that the U.S. government is refusing to lift the sanctions.

The sanctions were imposed after the U.S. International Trade Commission

found Korean chipmakers Hyundai and LG Semicon guilty of dumping their memory

chips on the U.S. market. But the U.S. has not lifted some of the sanctions

according to Korean officials. "Korea firmly believes that the U.S. has not

taken measures to comply with the rulings of the dispute settlement body,'' said

Korea's ambassador to the WTO Man Soon Chang.

Under U.S. Commerce Department procedures foreign competitors must present

proof that they are no longer dumping products and that they are unlikely to do

so in the future. The WTO has ruled that the latter condition is unfair. U.S.

trade officials said they believe a WTO review panel will find that the U.S. is

acting legally in enforcing its anti-dumping policies.