On-point: S. Korea eyeing removal of U.S. reciprocal tariffs ahead of consultations. How likely is that?

As mentioned earlier, South Korea's negotiation team of Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok and Industry Minister Ahn Duk-geun arrived in the U.S. ahead of the "two-plus-two" consultations set to take place tonight Korea time.

Eyes are on whether what the team aims for can be smoothly reached.

For more on this, we are connected live with Professor Song Soo-young this morning.

Good morning Professor, welcome to the show.

Just a few hours ago, the industry minister said he aims to have the imposition of reciprocal tariffs removed. Could you elaborate on the key agenda items expected to be discussed? And how do you forecast this to go?

U.S. President Donald Trump personally attended high-level tariff negotiations with Japan, and some speculate that a similar surprise appearance could happen with the Korean delegation. What should Seoul's strategy be to avoid a one-sided outcome in the event of such an intervention?

A little earlier, U.S. media reported that Trump is planning to spare carmakers from some of his tariffs. How does this retreat lift concerns from automakers a bit?

It seems Trump is slowly making some concessions, raising our hope for smooth negotiations tonight. However, even if trade negotiations between South Korea and the U.S. are concluded smoothly, many experts predict that the Korean economy will still be impacted if the U.S.-China tariff war drags on. What is your view on this?

The IMF revised down its global forecast, saying the world economy will grow by 2-point-8 percent this year. In terms of the South Korean economy, it said it will see just 1-percent growth this year. How did you see the IMF's latest projections, and if Trump retreats further, what positive effect might there be for the economic outlook?

That is all for now, Professor Song.

Thanks so much for sharing your insight with us.

We appreciate it.