We begin this lunchtime with the latest emergency discussions in Seoul in response to Japan's brutal trade restrictions on South Korea.
Seoul's finance minister on Monday laid out a step-by-step plan to bolster the country's competitiveness in the face of Tokyo's unprecedented actions.
Hong Yoo reports.
South Korea's finance minister Hong Nam-ki announced on Monday measures aimed at eliminating South Korea's external dependent industrial structure as part of its efforts to cope with Japan's recently-imposed export curbs.
Under the plan, South Korea plans to strengthen its supply of materials, components, and equipment to revive the nation's flagging manufacturing industry.
To do so, 100 strategic core items will be selected as items to be secured over the next five years based on their demand within South Korea.
South Korea will push to diversify import negotiations with various countries and try to expand local production by solving pending issues that prevent local companies from producing items that are badly needed.
In addition, the government will focus on establishing a healthy cooperation model between supply and demand chains among local companies.
Such measures will be backed by support from the government, which promised to muster all necessary assets and capabilities, like extra funding, tax relief and deregulation measures, to ease the burden on South Korean firms.
Hong also said the South Korean government will work hard to minimize corporate damage and uncertainty.

"We will try our best to stabilize the short term supply of materials, components, and equipment by securing alternate import partners.
Along with this, we will proceed with the measures discussed today as it's our task to innovatively reduce the external dependency of our industry through strong competitiveness in supplies."

Minister Hong wrapped up the meeting by emphasizing that Japan's removal of South Korea from its trade whitelist was an unfair economic sanction and he again urged Tokyo to retract the move.
Hong Yoo, Arirang News.