SEOUL, March 12 (Bernama-Yonhap) -- The South Korean government will go into a full emergency response mode as the United States (US) tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports went into effect Wednesday, Seoul's industry ministry said, amid efforts to minimise the impact of new US duties on local industries.
According to Yonhap News Agency the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy held a meeting with officials from various business associations, industries, academic institutes and support institutions to devise a strategy for the Donald Trump administration's new tariff scheme.
In the meeting, Industry Minister Ahn Duk-geun said his ministry will strengthen communication with local industries and beef up response measures against US tariffs to protect the interests of Korean companies.
"We will work to arrange meetings between senior trade officials from Seoul and Washington for negotiations, and closely monitor response measures of other major countries affected by the US tariffs," he said.
The meeting took place as the Trump administration's 25 per cent duties on all steel and aluminium imports kicked off at 1.01 pm. (Korea time).
South Korea was the fourth-largest exporter of steel to the US last year, accounting for nine per cent of Washington's steel imports, according to data from the US International Trade Administration (ITA).
The country was also the fourth-biggest exporter of aluminium to the US, taking up about four per cent of the US' aluminium imports.
Washington also plans to impose levies on various other goods, including automobiles, semiconductors and pharmaceuticals, as well as reciprocal tariffs on its trading partners, in the near future.
To help with Korean companies' response to US duties, the industry ministry plans to hold briefing sessions on Washington's trade policies, operate an emergency help desk and provide consultations on business strategies that it says may include diversification of export destinations and relocation of manufacturing facilities.
The ministry also plans to devise a set of strategies to bolster the global competitiveness of carmakers and other major industries.
In a recent interview with Yonhap News Agency, Trade Minister Cheong In-kyo said the government will work to swiftly identify what the Trump administration wants from Seoul in tariff negotiations and work to induce a favourable assessment of South Korea's contributions to the US economy through what Seoul has called massive corporate investments that amounted to over US$160 billion since the start of the first Trump administration.
Following Ahn's visit to Washington late last month, the Seoul government has launched consultative bodies on promoting bilateral cooperation in shipbuilding and energy industries with the US as part of their negotiations on Trump's tariff plans.
South Korea has also conveyed interest in participating in the gas pipeline development project in Alaska, one of Trump's key agenda items, as part of efforts to increase its energy imports from the US and thus reduce its trade surplus.
-- BERNAMA-YONHAP
