US President Donald Trump on Monday (local time) said that he is raising tariffs on South Korean imports of autos, lumber, and pharmaceutical drugs to 25 per cent from the previous 15 per cent, accusing Seoul of failing to uphold its trade agreement with the United States.
Trump further said that he is increasing tariffs on South Korean goods because the country's national assembly has yet to approve the trade deal he and President Lee Je Myung agreed to on July 30, 2025, and reaffirmed during his visit on October 29, 2025.
Tariffs on autos, lumber, and pharmaceuticals
In a post on Truth Social, the US President said, "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%."
"Our Trade Deals are very important to America. In each of these Deals, we have acted swiftly to reduce our TARIFFS in line with the Transaction agreed to. We, of course, expect our Trading Partners to do the same," he said.
"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?" he added.
The decision comes as South Korea remains one of the United States' leading sources of imported goods, exporting USD 132 billion worth of products to the US in 2024, according to Commerce Department data. Major shipments include automobiles and auto parts, along with semiconductors and electronics, sectors that could now face higher prices due to the increased duties.
US-South Korea trade deal
The tariff hike marks a reversal from a trade agreement announced in July, when Trump said the US would apply a uniform 15 per cent tariff on goods imported from South Korea, a rate that was 10 percentage points below what he had earlier threatened.
As part of that agreement, Trump also said South Korea had agreed to "give to the United States $350 Billion Dollars for Investments owned and controlled by the United States, and selected by myself, as President."
But the Trump administration's relations with South Korea have at times been rocky, with the raid last year by immigration officials at a Hyundai manufacturing site in Georgia that caused 475 people to be detained.
South Korea's presidential office responded in a statement that the US hasn't officially informed it of the tariff hike plan.
Meanwhile, it said South Korean Industry Minister Kim Jung-Kwan, who is currently visiting Canada, will soon travel to the US for talks with Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick. The statement said Kim Yong-beom, the presidential chief of staff for policy, will convene a meeting to discuss Trump's announcement.
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