S. Korean delegation departs for tariff talks in Washington

A South Korean trade delegation has departed for the U.S. to engage in more technical talks on tariffs.

Moon Hye-ryeon covers the agenda ahead.

A South Korean delegation will begin working-level talks with the U.S. Trade Representative in Washington on Tuesday local time, as part of broader efforts to finalize what's being dubbed the "July Package."

With both sides aiming for a comprehensive trade deal by July 8th, Seoul is expected to focus on minimizing the steep tariffs on its key exports.

However, time is tight, with the U.S. negotiating with its other trade partners and South Korea's presidential election just around the corner.

Six key topics are on the agenda for this round of technical discussions: balanced trade, non-tariff measures, economic security, digital trade, country of origin, and commercial considerations.

South Korea plans to use its cooperation in areas like shipbuilding as leverage, with the ultimate goal of lowering the 25-percent reciprocal tariff rates and the sector-specific tariffs on cars, steel, aluminum, and semiconductors.

Meanwhile, the U.S. is expected to push back with its own demands, with concerns over its trade deficit and various non-tariff barrier issues.

The Trump administration has pointed to a wide range of non-tariff barriers in Korea, such as restrictions on importing beef from cattle older than 30 months, as hindering American exports to the country.

Seoul has since responded by saying there were few barriers hindering trade with the United States, and experts say that some concessions could be made for low-impact sectors in order to gain leverage in more critical areas.

"We should be ready to ease non-tariff barriers on items like agricultural and livestock products — especially those with low import volumes. In return, we must push hard to secure U.S. tariff cuts on high-value exports like automobiles and semiconductors."

This comes after high-level ministerial meetings during the APEC trade summit in Jeju last week, where South Korea's trade minister Ahn Duk-geun followed up his meeting with the U.S. Trade Representative, Jamieson Greer, with a press conference.

He revealed that a ministerial-level interim review is scheduled for mid-June to finalize the results of the negotiations — meaning important decisions related to the trade agreement will be made by the next administration.

Moon Hye-ryeon, Arirang News.