TOKYO – Japan plans to lift restrictions on exports of key semiconductor materials to South Korea.

It is a move towards ending a feud that has spanned several years between the two tech powerhouses.

Japan will lift restrictions on exports of fluorinated polyimide, hydrogen fluoride and photoresist, South Korea’s trade ministry said on Thursday.

Those materials are essential ingredients for manufacturing the displays and semiconductors that go into gadgets, including iPhones and Samsung TVs.

On its part, South Korea’s trade ministry said it will drop a World Trade Organisation complaint against Japan.

Tokyo began requiring licences to export those materials to South Korean firms in 2019.

The move was due to a dispute over compensation for Koreans forced to work at Japanese factories and mines during the country’s 1910 to 1945 rule over the Korean peninsula.

The Japanese decision roiled South Korea’s biggest companies and drove a wedge between the two United States allies, disrupting ties ranging from security to trade. BLOOMBERG