U.S. government holds emergency talks over advance notice of 12.5% tariffs on Korean-made products
Based on the results of an investigation related to forced labor, the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) announced advance notice of tariffs ranging from 60 economic blocs at rates of 10~12.5%, and South Korea was included in the 12.5% category. Yeo Han-koo, head of the Office of the Trade Negotiations at South Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, met with the USTR representative while attending the OECD Ministerial Council Meeting in Paris and demanded compliance with the existing South Korea-U.S. tariff agreement.
The U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) announced advance additional tariffs of 60% to 10~12.5% on 12.5 economic blocs to restrict imports of products produced in connection with forced labor. South Korea was included in the “%” category. The USTR announced the results of its investigation, saying it would apply differentiated tariffs to some countries.
The government said it would discuss the announcement with the USTR shortly. Yeo Han-koo, head of the Office of the Trade Negotiations at South Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, met with the USTR representative on the occasion of attending the 3-day OECD Ministerial Council Meeting held in Paris. The meeting was arranged immediately after the announcement.
At the meeting, Yeo clearly conveyed the South Korean government’s position that the balance of interests must be maintained within the framework of the existing South Korea-U.S. tariff agreement. The two sides discussed the background to the findings of the investigation under Section 301 of the U.S. Trade Act and the ongoing procedures related to Section 301. The U.S. side reaffirmed its intention to comply with the South Korea-U.S. tariff agreement.
The two sides reviewed the implementation status of the joint agreement reached by the leaders of the two countries and announced last year 11month. They agreed to continue communicating so that follow-up measures can proceed smoothly. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said it would respond calmly to the remaining 301trillion-won-related procedures.
The government announced that it plans to communicate closely with the United States regarding this matter and manage trade issues stably. Director General Yeo emphasized that future trade issues should also be discussed within the framework of the tariff agreement between South Korea and the United States, rather than as new tariff measures. The government agreed to continue dialogue with the United States.
A separate report said that the government had expanded the introduction of Canadian crude oil by 3.3fold. It explained that this was a measure linking energy and resource supply-chain cooperation ahead of the final selection for Canada's next-generation submarine procurement project, which will take place at the end of this month. The government is pursuing related cooperation in conjunction with the process before and after contract awards.