In early July, Japan already limited exports of three chemical components — fluorinated polyimides, photoresist and hydrogen fluoride — that are vital to South Korean high-tech industries.
According to the Yonhap news agency, Tokyo plans to add approximately 1,100 items classified as strategic materials to the list. The specifics are expected to be presented on Wednesday.
Relations between Japan and South Korea dampened after the latter's top court ruled that a number of Japanese companies could be sued for their use of forced labour during the Japanese colonization of the Korean Peninsula between 1910-1945. Japan has protested the decision, claiming that the 1965 agreement between the two countries had resolved the issue of damages once and for all.
On 2 August, Tokyo made the decision to stop treating Seoul as a trusted trade partner.