NaH (0.4 g, purity: 60%) was suspended in 50 ml of THF. To this suspension, trimethylsilylethyl 6-(4,6-dimethoxypyrimidin-2-yl)oxysalicylate (3.0 g) was added, and the mixture was stirred at room temperature for 30 minutes. To this mixture, 4-chloro-6-methoxy-2-methylsulfonylpyrimidine (1.8 g) was added, and the mixture was stirred at room temperature for further 12 hours. After completion of the reaction, water was added thereto, and the mixture was extracted with ethyl ether. The ethyl ether layer was dried over anhydrous magnesium sulfate. Then, the solvent was distilled off under reduced pressure. The crude extract thus obtained was purified by silica gel column chromatography to obtain the above identified compound as a slightly yellow liquid (4.0 g).
