President Donald Trump said on Wednesday the United States would charge a 15% tariff on imports from South Korea as part of an agreement with the Asian trading partner that avoids even higher levies.
‘I am pleased to announce that the United States of America has agreed to a Full and Complete Trade Deal with the Republic of Korea,’ Trump said on Truth Social.
As part of the arrangement, South Korea would invest $350 billion in the United States in projects selected by Trump and purchase $100 billion of liquefied natural gas and other energy products, the president said.
It was not immediately clear how the investment deals would be structured or over what time frame. Trump said additional investments would be announced later.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung will visit the White House ‘within the next two weeks’ for a meeting with Trump, the U.S. president added.
Trump also said South Korea would accept American products, including cars, trucks and agriculture into its markets and impose no import duties on them.
Three cabinet-level South Korean officials met US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in Washington for trade talks with top business leaders also having flown in to help broker the tariff deal.
South Korean Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol joined Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan and Minister for Trade Yeo Han-koo, who have been in Washington since last week, for two hours of talks with Lutnick, a ministry spokesperson said in Seoul.
President Donald Trump said on Wednesday the United States would charge a 15% tariff on imports from South Korea as part of an agreement with the Asian trading partner that avoids even higher levies
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung will visit the White House ‘within the next two weeks’ for a meeting with Trump
A truck unloads a shipping container at Pyeongtaek port in Pyeongtaek, South Korea
Trump had originally set an August 1 deadline for 25% tariffs to kick in against South Korea, a major US ally and powerhouse exporter of chips, cars and steel.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung told his ministers to ‘engage in the difficult consultation with confidence’ as he was briefed on the status of the talks on Wednesday, his office said.
The latest meeting came as the Wall Street Journal reported that Lutnick had urged the South Korean team to bring their best and final offer to the table during a meeting he had with Kim and Yeo in Scotland.
Lutnick told the South Korean officials they need to ‘bring it all’ when they make their final offer to Trump, the report said.
South Korea’s benchmark KOSPI stock index rose 0.7% on Wednesday to hit a near four-year high, as the flurry of U.S. visits by government and company officials raised optimism around the country’s trade negotiations.
The heads of some of South Korea’s largest global companies also converged on Washington to lend support to government negotiators.
Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Euisun Chung was reported to be departing for Washington on Wednesday.
Samsung Electronics Chairman Jay Y. Lee and the vice chairman of the Hanwha Group, Kim Dong-kwan, whose affiliate Hanwha Ocean has unveiled a major investment plan in the United States, were also in Washington, D.C.
Trump took to his Truth Social platform to share the news of his trade deal
A South Korean protester, wearing a mask of President Donald Trump, protests against Trump’s tariffs policy on South Korea, near the US Embassy in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday. The signs read ‘Robber’
A TV at Seoul Station broadcasts a news report the Trump’s administration has agreed to impose 15 percent tariffs on South Korea, 10 percent lower than what was proposed, under a trade deal that would charge America no tariffs, in Seoul, South Korea
Hyundai Motor, which along with its affiliate Kia Corp is the world’s third-largest automaker, would have faced a significant impact in the absence of a waiver or reduction in the 25% import duty on cars given that the U.S. is a major export destination.
South Korean officials were also discussing potential cooperation in chips, batteries and biotechnology under a package proposal, South Korea’s chief presidential policy secretary Kim Yong-beom said.
Kim Yong-beom said last week currency policy had not been part of trade negotiations with the U.S. beyond regular consultations, but a foreign exchange official travelled to Washington to be prepared if the U.S. raises the issue, according to the finance ministry.
In late April, South Korea agreed to consult on foreign exchange via a separate channel at the opening round of trade talks.
Pressure has been mounting on South Korea since Japan clinched a deal to cut Trump’s threatened tariffs to 15% last week.
This was followed by a U.S.-EU trade deal over the weekend, and Trump’s top aides, including Bessent, are now working to close a deal with China.
