On July 23, the Trump administration announced the imposition of forced labor tariffs ranging from 10% to 12.5% on 60 countries, based on Section 301 of the Trade Act.
According to Yonhap News, South Korea is effectively facing a 12.5% tariff, which comes just before the expiration of the 10% global tariff introduced following a Supreme Court ruling in February that invalidated reciprocal tariffs.
The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) confirmed the tariffs, citing concerns over imports of products produced through forced labor.
Along with Japan, South Korea is subject to the effective 12.5% tariff.
The USTR had previously announced plans for these tariffs in early June and finalized them after gathering feedback from the affected countries.
Earlier in March, the USTR initiated investigations into the impact of imports produced through structural overproduction and forced labor on U.S. trade.
In response, the Trump administration imposed a global tariff of 10% under Section 122 of the Trade Act, which was only valid for a maximum of 150 days, expiring at midnight on July 24.
The global tariff, which filled the gap left by the invalidated reciprocal tariffs, is now being replaced by the Section 301 tariffs as the deadline approaches.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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