The 2+2 ministerial talks between Korea and the United States regarding the economic and trade sectors have been postponed due to scheduling issues with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, while trade negotiations with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick will proceed as scheduled.
Minister Lutnick said during an interview with CNBC on the 24th (local time), "Koreans are visiting my office today regarding trade." On that day, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Kim Jeong-gwan and Chief Trade Negotiator Yeo Han-koo are scheduled to meet with Minister Lutnick at the U.S. Department of Commerce.
He noted, "Korea, like Europe, really wants to conclude negotiations," adding, "I could hear expletives coming from the mouth of Korea when reading the agreement with Japan. Korea and Japan are wary of each other."
He continued, "So one can imagine what Korea might have thought when seeing Japan's negotiated settlement, thinking, 'Oh, what should I do?' and, of course, Korea will come to my office today to talk."
Minister Lutnick's comments suggest that the U.S. recognizes that Korea and Japan are in a competitive position regarding trade negotiations with the U.S. Earlier, Japan agreed to lower the initially announced mutual tariff from 25% to 15% in exchange for promising to invest $550 billion and to open its automotive and rice markets.
Considering that automobiles are the main export items to the U.S. for both Korea and Japan, if higher tariffs are maintained compared to Japan, the Korean automotive industry will face unfavorable conditions.