The United States has agreed to impose a 15% tariff on imports from South Korea under a trade agreement for most South Korean products, as seen in this photo illustration in Brussels, Belgium, on August 1, 2025.
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According to Yonhap News, South Korea’s ruling party, the Democratic Party of Korea, announced that it would pass a special law on the US trade agreement by the end of February, after US President Donald Trump threatened to raise tariffs on exports to South Korea.
President Trump announced early Tuesday that he would raise tariffs on exports to South Korea from the current 15% to 25%, citing delays in Congressional approval of the Washington-Seoul trade agreement agreed last July.
According to a Google translation of a Korean-language statement submitted to South Korea’s parliament in November last year, Kim Hyun-jung, a spokesperson for the ruling Democratic Party, said that President Trump was likely referring to the Special Act on Strategic Investment Management between South Korea and the United States.
The bill aims to create a state-run investment corporation to manage a $350 billion investment plan that the South Korean government has pledged to Washington.
Kim said that five related bills have been submitted to the National Assembly and will be debated in the future, adding, “Since both the Democratic Party and the People’s Power Party are proposing these bills, there is a high possibility that they will be passed quickly.”
Currently, the ruling Democratic Progressive Party holds 162 seats in the 300-member Diet, including four vacant seats, while the Democratic Progressive Party holds 107 seats.
“What we need now is to urgently confirm the intentions and facts of the U.S. statement and correct any misunderstandings,” he said.
According to South Korean media outlet Yonhap News, the South Korean presidential office said earlier that it had not received any official notification or explanation from the United States regarding the announcement.
South Korea’s Ministry of Finance said it would keep the US informed about the legislative process, while South Korea’s Ministry of International Trade and Industry announced that Industry Minister Kim Jong-kwang would visit Washington for consultations on the issue, Yonhap news agency reported.
Kim said, “The time has come for the government, the ruling and opposition parties in the National Assembly to join forces.I look forward to bipartisan cooperation from the People’s Power Party.”
South Korean automakers Hyundai and Kia plunged in early trading following President Trump’s threats, but have since pared losses. Hyundai Motors was down 0.1% in the last session, while Kia Motors was down 1.16%. The comprehensive Kospi index rose 1.9%, and the small-cap Kosdaq index rose 0.89%.
