Trump raises US tariffs on South Korean imports to 25% and blames ally for trade deal delay
Donald Trump said he would raise tariffs on imports from South Korea to 25 per cent after accusing the Asian ally of dragging its feet on enacting a trade pact reached last year to make huge investments in U.S. business projects.
The U.S. President blamed South Korea’s National Assembly for not ratifying the trade deal he reached with President Lee Jae Myung in July which they later reaffirmed during Trump’s visit to Seoul in October.
“Because the Korean Legislature hasn’t enacted our Historic Trade Agreement, which is their prerogative, I am hereby increasing South Korean TARIFFS on Autos, Lumber, Pharma, and all other Reciprocal TARIFFS, from 15% to 25%,” the president said.
The White House has not yet issued an executive order to put the tariffs into effect as of Tuesday. But South Korea's presidential Blue House said it was committed to implementing the deal and would continue to take the required steps to finalise it to stave off tariff hikes.
The US president imposed a 25 pe..