\tSouth Korea publicised plans to invest KRW1 trillion ($854 million) annually in developing high-tech materials to reduce its dependence on imports from Japan, after the country suddenly announced it would restrict the export of some materials to Korean companies, Yonhap News Agency reported.<\/p>\n
A representative from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said it completed a feasibility study on the investment, covering production of semiconductor materials, parts and equipment over the ten years starting in 2020, the news agency wrote.<\/p>\n
Earlier in the week, Japan said it planned to limit the export of highly specialised products needed to make chips and smartphone displays, an apparent reaction to a Korean court ruling Japanese companies must compensate its citizens for being forced to work in factories between 1910 and 1945.<\/p>\n
The Korean government also aims to regulate the import of materials it considers vital, such as fluorine-containing polyimide used to make flexible OLED displays, etching gas and resist, a thin layer used to transfer a circuit pattern to a semiconductor substrate.<\/p>\n
In the first five months of 2019, Korean companies imported 90 per cent of their fluorine-containing polyimide and resist supplies from Japan, data from Korea International Trade Association showed.<\/p>\n
The trade ministry plans to prepare a detailed plan by the end of the month on boosting production of high-tech materials, the news agency stated.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
South Korea publicised plans to invest KRW1 trillion ($854 million) annually in developing high-tech materials …<\/p>\n
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