Ministry of Industry: "If the US imposes reciprocal tariffs, consultations with the US will be conducted"

by Ju Sangdon

Published 14 Feb.2025 15:32(KST)

Updated 14 Feb.2025 15:39(KST)

Meeting with Industry Associations to Address Reciprocal Tariff Measures

Park Jong-won, Deputy Minister for Trade at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, stated on the 14th, "In the event that reciprocal tariffs are imposed due to Korea's non-tariff measures, we will closely communicate with relevant ministries and industries to minimize the impact on our industries, seek response strategies, and proceed with consultations with the United States."

Jongwon Park, Deputy Minister for Trade at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, is presiding over the "Meeting on Responding to U.S. Tariff Measures" at the Korea Textile Center in Seoul.

On the same day, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy held a meeting at the Textile Center with industry-specific associations and economic organizations to assess the impact on our industries and discuss response measures regarding the U.S. review of reciprocal tariff imposition announced on the 13th (local time), chaired by Deputy Minister Park.

The ministry anticipates that the U.S. will consider not only tariffs imposed by trading partners on U.S. products but also non-tariff measures such as taxes (value-added tax, etc.), subsidies, exchange rates, and unfair practices, and after review, implement measures such as country-specific reciprocal tariffs.

Deputy Minister Park said, "Under the Korea-U.S. FTA, which came into effect in 2012, Korea and the United States apply reciprocal zero tariffs on most imports," adding, "The government plans to fully utilize available channels to closely monitor U.S. trade trends and strengthen support to secure the competitiveness of Korean export companies."