Officials from Japan and South Korea are holding working-level talks to discuss Japan's trade restrictions on Friday in Tokyo, local media reported.

At the request of the South Korean government, the Japanese side will explain the purpose and process of implementing export controls. South Korea is making efforts to reverse those Japanese measures, according to Yonhap.

These are the first-ever working-level talks after Japan enforced restrictions on export of certain high-tech materials to South Korea on July 4.

Meanwhile, South Korea on Friday is proposing an investigation by United Nations into Japan's claim over "South Korea's strategic material control", Yonhap reported.

Tokyo last week said it would stop the shipment of compounds used by major firms including Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix in the manufacture of microchips and smartphones, increasing long-simmering tensions over the use of forced labor during World War Two.

South Korean chipmakers and Japanese chemical suppliers caught in the midst of a sudden escalation of a bilateral diplomatic dispute are scrambling to circumvent tightened export controls imposed by Tokyo, industry executives said.

Japan said last week it would stop preferential treatment for shipments of the three materials to South Korea, requiring exporters to gain permission each time they want to ship, which takes around 90 days.

The curbs apply to three materials where Japan is dominant: photoresists, used to transfer circuit patterns onto semiconductor wafers; hydrogen fluoride, used as an etching gas in the chipmaking process and fluorinated polyimides, used in smartphone displays.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Wednesday told top business leaders that Japan's ban on vital manufacturing materials had caused an "unprecedented emergency" and warned of a drawn-out trade dispute.