Trump Raises Tariffs on South Korean Imports to 25%

U.S. President Donald Trump has announced that tariffs on imports from South Korea will increase to 25 percent.

Tariffs on cars, wood products, pharmaceuticals, and other goods will rise from 15 percent to 25 percent, according to Trump.

He shared this information on his social media platform, Truth, calling it a “reciprocal tariff.” This means that if another country imposes high tariffs on U.S. products, the U.S. will respond by increasing tariffs on goods imported from that country.

Trump justified the move by accusing South Korea of not properly implementing last year’s trade agreement. He also mentioned that the South Korean parliament delayed approving the agreement, while the U.S. has already reduced its tariffs according to the deal.

South Korea, however, stated that it had not received official notice of the U.S. tariff increase and emphasized the need for immediate negotiations with the United States, according to BBC reports.

The U.S. primarily imports industrial and high-tech products from South Korea, including cars and auto parts (brands like Hyundai and Kia), semiconductors (chips), mobile phones, TVs, display panels, heavy machinery, plastics, raw chemicals, steel sheets, pipes, other metals, some pharmaceuticals, medical technology equipment, ships and marine equipment, lithium batteries, and electric vehicle components.

Analysts expect that the tariff increase could directly impact industries and consumers in both countries.