Trump says U.S. is raising auto, reciprocal tariffs on S. Korea
U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday that he's raising "reciprocal" tariffs and auto duties on South Korea to 25 percent from 15 percent as he argued the Asian ally's legislature has not yet completed a domestic process to implement a bilateral trade deal, Yonhap reports.
Trump made the surprise announcement in a social media post, saying that his administration has acted "swiftly" to lower its tariffs following trade deals and expects its trading partners "to do the same" -- a remark that observers say might reflect his wish to see Seoul quickly follow through on its investment pledges.
The announcement has prompted Korea's presidential office Cheong Wa Dae to call an interagency meeting to discuss responses and decide to rush Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan, who is currently in Canada, to the United States for talks with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
"South Korea's Legislature is not living up to its Deal with the United States. President Lee and I reached a Great Deal for both Countries on July 30, 2025, and we reaffirmed these terms while I was in Korea on October 29, 2025. Why hasn't the Korean Legislature approved it?" Trump wrote on Truth Social.
"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%."
It remains unknown exactly when Trump plans to have the increased tariffs go into effect. The White House did not respond immediately to a request for comment.
He was apparently referring to a bill that the ruling Democratic Party submitted to the National Assembly in November to implement the bilateral trade and investment deal. It has yet to pass through the legislature.
Released in November, a joint fact sheet detailed a series of agreements on trade, investment and security in the two countries' deal, including South Korea's commitment to investing US$350 billion in the U.S. and other pledges in return for Washington's lowering of reciprocal tariffs and auto levies on South Korea to 15 percent.
The document also included the Trump administration's approval for Seoul's push to acquire nuclear-powered submarines and its support for Korea's drive to secure civil uranium enrichment and spent nuclear fuel reprocessing rights for peaceful purposes.
Earlier Trump warned Canada of 100% tariffs over China links.
