TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Japan’s Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Kajiyama Hiroshi has contacted the Taiwan government and asked its semiconductor producers to increase output, reports said Tuesday (Jan. 26).

Direct interaction between the governments of the two countries is rare as they do not maintain official diplomatic relations, while China disapproves of such contacts. However, as the Japanese car industry is facing a shortage of semiconductors, Kajiyama told a news conference Tuesday he had asked the Taiwanese authorities for assistance, CNA reported.

The government and car manufacturers have worked closely to promote their cause with the bodies governing relations between Japan and Taiwan, the minister said. Nevertheless, he predicted the current shortage will continue and his ministry would continue to monitor developments.

The COVID-19 pandemic and its need for distance working, the recovery in the car market, and sanctions by the United States against China, all conspired to produce a shortage in semiconductors and a redirection of demand toward Taiwan's chip producers, reports said. Several other countries, including Germany, have asked Taiwanese chipmakers to ramp up production to meet increasing demand.