Business: Chipping Away at a Vast Market

Japan jostles the U.S. for supremacy in semiconductor sales

Autos are the most visible and painful example, but far from the only one. In recent years one stumbling U.S. industry after another—from shipbuilding to textiles to color television sets—has succumbed to the onslaught of aggressive and efficient foreign competitors, especially from Japan.

Now come signs that Japan is looking to add yet another scalp to its lengthening collection of industrial trophies —the $4.8 billion U.S. production of integrated circuits, the hottest and most highly competitive field of advanced industrial technology. The worldwide semiconductor market is expected to soar to $100 billion annually...

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