Japan new trade chief rejects Seoul's claim to WTO over export curbs

Japan's new trade minister, Isshu Sugawara, dismissed on Wednesday that South Korea's plan to complain to the World Trade Organization over Japan's curbs on exports to its neighbour.

South Korea was set to file a complaint over Japan's tighter export controls at the WTO on Wednesday, accusing Tokyo of a "politically motivated" claim and "discriminatory" in an escalating row rooted in wartime history. In July, Japan imposed tighter controls on exports of three materials to South Korea used in smartphone chips and displays following a diplomatic dispute over compensation for forced labourers during Japan's occupation of Korea during World War Two.