South Korea holds emergency meeting on US tariffs on steel, aluminum imports

SEOUL: South Korea's industry ministry held an emergency meeting on Monday to assess the possible impact on local businesses from the United States' plan to impose a 25 percent tariff on all steel and aluminium imports.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy held the meeting with officials from major local steel companies, including POSCO Holdings Inc. and Hyundai Steel Co., to discuss responses to the proposed US tariffs, according to ministry officials.

Earlier in the day, US President Donald Trump said he will announce on Monday (US time) the imposition of a new 25 percent tariff on all steel and aluminium imports into the US.

The announcement stoked concerns South Korean companies could be directly influenced by the anticipated US tariffs, unlike the Trump administration's previous move to impose tariffs on Canadian, Mexican, and Chinese goods. South Korea accounts for some 13 percent of US steel imports, according to data from the Korea International Trade Association (KITA).

Trump had imposed a 25 percent tariff on all steel imports to the US in 2018, citing national security concerns.

At the time, the US waived the tariffs on South Korean steel products in return for a yearly import quota of 2.63 million tonnes, which accounted for about 70 percent of Seoul's average export volume between 2015 and 2017.

In the emergency meeting, Deputy Trade Minister Park Jong-won said the government will "proactively" respond to the shift in US trade policy by using "all available networks" and closely collaborating with related industries.

Officials at local steelmakers Hyundai Steel and POSCO Holdings said they are closely monitoring the situation as there are uncertainties surrounding US trade policies at the moment.

Hyundai Steel had been considering constructing a steel mill in the US prior to Trump's recent announcement. The local automotive and home appliances industries are also paying attention to Trump's move, as they could also be affected by tariffs on steel and aluminium, Yonhap news agency reported.

Market watchers say tariffs on South Korean steel and aluminium could lead to the price hike of Korean vehicles and home appliance products as they use local steel and aluminium.

For instance, Hyundai Steel supplies steel products from its plant here to Hyundai Motor Group's car manufacturing facilities in the US. (IANS)

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