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.
Chinaimposed the curb on imports of dichlorosilane fromJapan, 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 Japanhave been strainedsince November, when Japanese Prime MinisterSanae Takaichiangered 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 ministrylaunched its anti-dumping probeinto Japanese DCS as part of various measures against Japan. Beijing has also imposedexport controlson 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.
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Yamaguchi reported from Tokyo.
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