SAN FRANCISCO - HEWLETT-PACKARD on Monday said it is suing a Taiwan-based firm for peddling inkjet cartridges made from parts swiped from the US technology giant's facilities in Asia.

HP has called on the International Trade Commission to investigate whether its patents were infringed and has filed a lawsuit in a US District Court in California, the company said in an email response to an AFP inquiry.

The lawsuit 'includes allegations related to the distribution and sale of products, which HP believes to have been stolen from HP facilities in Asia,' the company said.

'HP asserts that the sale of these products constitutes conversion of HP property and unfair competition. There are not any allegations of manufacture or sale of counterfeit products.'

Ink cartridge manufacturer Microjet Technology was named in the lawsuit but said it had not received any legal documents, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.