SEOUL: South Korea moved to downgrade Japan from its list of most trusted trading partners while also seeking talks to end a months-long spat that has hurt economic ties between the two American allies.
South Korea plans to split its fast-track category into two and initially put Japan as the only country in the second one, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said Monday. The move comes less than two weeks after Japan removed South Korea from its list of "white nations” considered safe enough to export strategic materials to.