The deputy chief of South Korea's National Security Office says there is only a "handful" of strategic import items affected by Japan's recent removal of South Korea from a list of nations that enjoy fast-track export clearance.

Appearing on a local radio program on Monday, President Moon Jae-in's deputy security adviser Kim Hyun-chong said an inspection has found that among one-thousand-194 Japanese items, not that many are expected to be negatively affected by Tokyo's new trade rules.

Kim's remarks suggest that the direct impact of Tokyo's "whitelist" removal on the local economy will not be as great as previously thought, and that Seoul is capable of coping with the restrictions.

When asked about Seoul's possible response measures, Kim referred to South Korean companies' 72-percent global DRAM market share, adding that should Japan's export curbs force the suspension of their DRAM supply for two months, it would lead to a halt in global production of 230 million smartphones units.

In the long-term, Kim said the South Korean economy should seek ways to reduce its dependency on trade and invest in the advancement of the country's technological prowess.