But according to Korean International Trade Association (KITA) figures released Friday, Korea had a US$19 billion trade deficit with Japan while earning a surplus of US$13.2 billion with China. Korea is spending in Japan the money it earns in China, and Japan is spending in China the money it earns in Korea.

Comparison over time, however, reveals that Japan is seeing a better trade balance in this triangular relationship. As recently as 2001 it had a deficit of Y2 trillion in trade with Korea and China, but last year that deficit shrank to Y140 billion.

One reason for Japan's better performance is that Japanese companies have more factories and joint ventures running in China, allowing them to purchase parts from the Japanese companies they had already been doing business with, according to analysis in the Japanese press.

Japan has long enjoyed a massive surplus with Korea, but cheap agricultural products, clothes, and computers from China have meant yearly deficits of between two and three trillion Yen. There have been attempts in Japan to restrict imports of Chinese agricultural products, with proponents to of such restrictions citing what they allege are China's use of farm chemicals.

(Choe Heup, pot@chosun.com )