Korean Goods to Face 15% Tariff
President Donald Trump, in a July 30 social media post, said that he had "agreed to a Full and Complete Trade Deal with the Republic of Korea. The Deal is that South Korea will give to the United States $350 Billion Dollars for Investments owned and controlled by the United States, and selected by myself, as President. Additionally, South Korea will purchase $100 Billion Dollars of LNG, or other Energy products and, further, South Korea has agreed to invest a large sum of money for their Investment purposes."
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He added, "It is also agreed that South Korea will be completely OPEN TO TRADE with the United States, and that they will accept American product including Cars and Trucks, Agriculture, etc. We have agreed to a Tariff for South Korea of 15%. America will not be charged a Tariff."
South Korea already had a more than 1,000-page traditional free trade deal, which went into effect in 2012, and was amended in 2019 during Trump's first term. Under KORUS, Korea eliminated its 8% tariff on cars for U.S. exports to zero in 2016, and eliminated its 10% light truck tariff. It also eliminated tariffs on virtually all auto parts on both sides; the U.S. dropped its 2.5% tariff on cars in 2016. As part of the 2019 modification, the U.S. wasn't going to eliminate its 25% light truck tariff until 2041. Under KORUS, Korea granted duty-free status to almost two-thirds of U.S. ag exports immediately, and phased out tariffs and quotas on most other ag goods by 2021.
This was a major change, as South Korea had a 40% tariff on beef; by 2023, U.S. exporters were exporting $1.4 billion in beef. In the 2019 modification, South Korea gave the U.S. a country-specific quota for $110 million worth of rice.
The social media post didn't say if Korean car and car part exports will be subject to a 15% rather than 25% tariff, as is the case for Japan and the EU.
Top exports from South Korea to the U.S. include cars, semiconductors, car parts and appliances. South Korea's foreign ministry said U.S. exports faced a 0.79% tariff on average last year.