The Unification Ministry is known to be asking South Korean companies doing trade with North Korea to delay their settling of bills for products made in the North.

An employee at a company that does original equipment manufacturing in the North says he submitted documents to the ministry Thursday saying settlements for goods assembled in North Korea have been put on hold. The employee says the ministry requested this when the company applied for permission to bring in finished goods shipped from the North.

The ministry is known to be permitting on a case-by-case basis finished goods shipped from North Korea and asking South Korean companies to delay settlement.

A ministry official says Seoul is reviewing whether to allow settlement because certain South Korean trading companies are in a situation where they must pay. The official says the ministry is requesting that companies not pay until Seoul finalizes its stance.

Experts say this measure is intended to cut off cashflow to China, including dollars, as part of punitive economic sanctions against the North over its sinking of a South Korean warship.