S. Korean Finance Minister Calls On Japan To Lift Export Restrictions Amid Trade Dispute

South Korean Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki on Wednesday urged Japanese authorities to revoke export restrictions on materials vital to Korean high-tech industries after the two sides failed to come to terms during their second round of talks in Geneva, media reported

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 20th November, 2019) South Korean Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki on Wednesday urged Japanese authorities to revoke export restrictions on materials vital to Korean high-tech industries after the two sides failed to come to terms during their second round of talks in Geneva, media reported.

The negotiations were held under the auspices of the World Trade Organization in Geneva on Tuesday in an attempt to settle the two nations' trade dispute. The first round happened on October 11.

"The Japanese move would damage South Korea and Japan, and significantly weaken a global value chain," South Korean state-run Yonhap news Agency cited Hong as saying during a meeting at a chemical firm's research center in the town of Ansan.

These meetings are being seen as an attempt by Seoul to increase the country's competitiveness in industrial materials and, most importantly, become less dependent on Japan in the technology sector, according to the media outlet.

Investments worth 180 billion won ($154 million) are expected to be injected by South Korean companies between 2019 and 2024 to develop industrial technologies for mass-produced semiconductors, automobiles and electronics.

The trade spat between the two Asian nations started after Japan canceled preferential treatment for the exports of chemicals used for the production of electronic equipment, dealing a powerful blow to South Korea's economy. The move is believed to be related to Japan's plans to sell assets of companies that have been ordered by a South Korean court to pay compensation to the victims of forced labor during Japan's colonial rule in the early 20th century.