S. Korean trade minister says Japan's easing of export curb insufficient

SEOUL, Dec. 22 (Yonhap) -- Japan's recent easing of its export restrictions on one of three materials used to produce semiconductors may be a start but is not a fundamental solution, South Korea's trade minister said Sunday, urging full removal of the restrictions put in place nearly five months earlier. "It is a voluntary step, and I believe it marks a little progress," said Trade Minister Sung Yun-mo of Japan's decision last week to grant a three-year permit to a Japanese manufacturer of photoresist to ship its products to a South Korean importer. "But we believe it may not be sufficient to fundamentally resolve the issue," he added. Tokyo tightened its export restrictions on photoresist, along with etching gas and fluorinated polyimide, at the start of July, prompting a strong reaction from Seoul. The move to ease its export curbs came Friday, four days before South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will hold a bilateral summit on the sidelines of a three-way meeting in Beijing that will also involve Chinese President Xi Jinping. The three industrial materials are used to produce semiconductors and display panels, both of which are key export items of South Korea and together accounted for more than one quarter of the country's overall exports in 2018. "We will actively engage (Japan) to put its export restrictions back to pre-July 1 levels," Sung told reporters, shortly before heading to Beijing for a three-way meeting with his Japanese and Chinese counterparts. "We hope there will be progress and will do our utmost toward that end," Sung added. He added, however, that no one-on-one meeting has been arranged so far with his Japanese counterpart. (END)