As Japan chip talks near, U.S. turns up the pressure

Article Abstract:

US trade negotiators are likely to grumble over Japan's failure to meet the goal of increasing the market share of imported integrated circuits to 20 percent when trade talks reopen in Hawaii the week of Mar 22, 1993. Yet the consensus of US semiconductor vendors is that the agreement has in fact succeeded in significantly increasing their access to the Japanese market, even if they have not yet achieved a full 20-percent market share. While US semiconductor vendors had but 8.6 percent of the market when the two countries agreed to the 20 percent goal in 1986, they commanded an estimated 17-percent or greater market share in 1992. Indeed, Japanese officials are worried that the overall success of the 1986 semiconductor agreement might encourage other US industries to press for specific market-share goals covering their products as well, raising the fearsome spectre of full-scale managed trade.

Integrated circuits, Integrated circuit fabrication, International relations, Commercial treaties, Trade agreements, Growth (Physiology), Market share, Growth, Cooperative Agreements, Precedent

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National Semiconductor plans a big revamping

Article Abstract:

National Semiconductor Corp announces it will implement a reorganization plan that involves significant layoffs and the shedding of two products from its line. National will lay off some 2,000 of its 32,000 employees and will also take a $140 million charge against earnings for its quarter ending August 26, 1990. In addition to the charge, National states its earnings for the quarter will fall below analysts' expectations. National will stop manufacturing its semi-custom gate-array chips, and will also cease making static random access memory (SRAM) chips that use BiCMOS technology. The firm will continue to produce the SRAM chips used by Cray Research Inc in its supercomputers, but it will not make the next generation of chips, which Cray will now have to buy from companies in Japan.

Human resource management, National Semiconductor Corp., NSM, Layoffs, Layoff, Cost control, Financial Analysis Software, Cost Reduction, Reorganization

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A semiconductor agreement with Japan is still elusive

Article Abstract:

United States and Japanese trade negotiators still have not achieved a semiconductor trade agreement. Negotiations will resume in Tokyo on friday, May 17, 1991. The first five-year agreement will expire in the summer of 1991. The first agreement is seen as a mixed success: so-called dumping is reduced, but a 20 percent market share for Americans in Japan is not yet realized. The new agreement would call for a 20 percent market share in Japan by 1992. Don Phillips, who is with the US Office of the Trade Representative, believes that an agreement could be reached at the meetings scheduled for this weekend.

United States, International aspects, Economic policy, United States foreign relations, United States. Office of the United States Trade Representative, International competition (Economics), Japanese Competition

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