South Korea-Japan Trade Row: Latest Developments

In a retaliatory move early on Monday, South Korea announced its intention to remove Japan from its trade whitelist as the latest move in the trade row between the two countries rages on for over a month. About a week ago, Japan had deleted South Korea from its trade whitelist.

Removal from a trade whitelist will cause delays for both nations when applying for trade permits to export to each other’s markets. In addition, according to South Korean Industry Minister Sung Yun-mo, Japan will be added to a new restrictive trade list among countries whose export control systems are in keeping with international export control principles.

Japan is the first country to be added to such a list on account of its inappropriate trade practices, confirmed a South Korean trade official. In addition, South Korea has also retaliated to Japan curbing exports of key raw materials by announcing investments worth nearly $6.5 billion in R&D to increase use of local materials and reduce dependence on Japan for them.