SEOUL: South Korea and the United States on Friday signed an MOU confirming Seoul's USD 350 billion investment commitment, which was part of a deal to lower US tariffs, the South Korean industry ministry said.
According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Resources, the agreement was signed electronically by South Korean Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan and US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
This follows the October 29 deal, when South Korea's presidential chief of staff for policy, Kim Yong-beom, announced that Seoul and Washington had agreed on the remaining details of the trade framework after a bilateral meeting between President Lee Jae Myung and US President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the APEC summit in Gyeongju, CNN reported.
While the two countries had settled the broad outline of the deal in July--bringing their reciprocal tariff down to 15 per cent--key sticking points remained. Most notably, South Korean automobile exports to the US were still subject to a 25 per cent tariff, and semiconductor tariffs remained higher than those faced by rivals.
Among the USD 350 billion investments Trump demanded upfront, Kim stated that USD 200 billion would be paid in cash and USD 150 billion would be fulfilled through shipbuilding cooperation, which would be led by South Korean companies, CNN reported. (ANI)
Also Read: South Korea reaches consensus on 2035 greenhouse gas reduction at 53-61%