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INTRODUCTION
At the insistence of the United States, in 1986 Japan agreed to
limit its exports of semiconductors, mainly the dynamic random
access memory (DRAM) chips, to America. These chips are used in
high- tech consumer electronics equipment like computers and video
cassette recorders. The agreement expires this July 1, and the Bush
Administration thus soon must decide whether to renew it. Doing so
would make Washington a hypocrite in its free trade efforts to open
markets abroad for American products. The 1986 chip agreement,
after all, restricts trade, ostensibly to help some American
segments of the semiconductor industry. The agreement in fact has