Trump Seeks Deal With South Korea After Tariff Hike

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump said that the United States and South Korea will work out a solution after his announcement that he would increase tariffs on imports from the asian ally to 25%

“We’ll work something out with South Korea,” Trump said as he left the White House to give a speech in Iowa. He didn’t give more details. 

His chief trade negotiator, Jamieson Greer, said that he had reduced the tariff rate on South Korean goods to 15% from  25%, in return, South Korea promised to invest $350 billions in the United States, allow more US cars to be sold in South Korean and remove some trade barriers.

However, Greer said South Korea has not passed the required laws to enable investment. He also said the country failed to meet its promises in farming, industry, and digital services.

On Monday, Trump posted on his social media that he was increasing tariffs on South Korean goods because its parliament did not keep its promises under last year’s deal. This news shattered South Korean officials, who said they were not warned. Greer added that the U.S. trade deficit with South Korea had grown to $65 billion and that this is unacceptable. 

South Korea’s parliament is not expected to meet again until February. Five bills needed to approve the U.S. investment are still pending, but ruling party members hope they will pass next. The U.S. is also concerned about new South Korean laws governing digital services and online platforms. The U.S. believes these laws may unfairly affect American companies.

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Earlier this month, South Korea’s Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol told Reuters that the government wants to move forward with the investment plan quickly. Still, he warned that uncertainty around a U.S. Supreme Court decision on Trump’s tariffs could slow things down.