Hynix says US lifts countervailing duties on DRAM

SEOUL, Aug 4 (Reuters) - Hynix Semiconductor Inc (000660.KS) said on Monday the U.S. Department of Commerce had ruled to lift a 23.78 percent countervailing duty on DRAM chips made in South Korea, a move that is expected to come into effect in November.

Hynix, the world's No. 2 maker of memory chips, said in a statement that the preliminary ruling, which follows the European Union's decision to lift similar duties, would be made final on Nov. 20.

Hynix expressed hope that the ruling would allow the company to decide freely on the global production and sale of its products, and help it return to profit in the third quarter.

The market for dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chips, mostly used in personal computers, is in the midst of a severe downturn. Hynix last week posted its third straight quarterly loss. "The United States is the world's top DRAM market, with customers such as HP (HPQ.N), Dell (DELL.O), IBM (IBM.N), and also a key market where standardisation and certification of next-generation products is made," Hynix said.

A Hynix spokeswoman declined to give any estimate of the U.S. move's impact on Hynix's finances. Hynix had said previously that the United States represents about 25 percent of its total DRAM exports.

In May, the World Trade Organisation (WTO) ruled that Japan must scrap its 27.2 percent countervailing duties on imports of South Korean DRAM chips by Sept. 1 this year.

(Reporting by Marie-France Han; Editing by Jonathan Hopfner)