The United States and South Korea have reached a broad trade agreement following talks between their leaders in Gyeongju, both governments confirmed on Wednesday.
South Korea’s presidential aide, Kim Yong-beom, said the two sides agreed to maintain reciprocal tariffs at 15% but will reduce taxes on cars and car parts. He added that South Korea will invest $350 billion in the US, including $200 billion in cash and $150 billion in shipbuilding.
US President Donald Trump, who is on a week-long Asia tour, said the deal was “pretty much finalised” after nearly two hours of discussions with President Lee Jae Myung. “We had a tremendous meeting today with South Korea,” Trump said, adding that “a lot was determined.”
The agreement follows months of tension after Washington imposed a 25% tariff on Seoul earlier this year, later reduced to 15% after South Korea pledged major investments and LNG purchases.
Ties between the two allies had also been strained by a recent US immigration raid that saw hundreds of South Koreans detained.
Trump is set to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday in Busan, on the sidelines of the Apec Summit. “We’re going to have something very satisfactory to China and to us,” Trump told reporters.
During his visit, Trump received South Korea’s highest honor, the Grand Order of Mugunghwa, and a golden crown “for his contribution to peace on the Korean Peninsula.”
His trip comes amid renewed North Korean missile tests and protests in Seoul. Earlier in Japan, Trump signed an agreement on rare earth minerals and reaffirmed a “golden age” of US-Japan relations.
