Is S. Korea-U.S. tariff deal a win-win solution?

Tariffs of 15% on South Korean exports in return for a whopping 450 billion dollar investment in the U.S.

That's the deal that settled months-long tariff talks between Seoul and Washington.

Following the dramatic agreement will be a summit between the leaders of the two countries.

Tonight, we're joined by Hannah Kim, associate professor at Sogang University's GSIS.

Hello, professor Kim.

Also connecting with us is Hwa-gyun Kim, professor of banking and finance at the Mays Business School of Texas A&M University.

Welcome.

1. (HWA-GYUN KIM) 150 billion out of the 350 billion will go to shipbuilding for the U.S.

It's the MASGA project that's at the heart of the final deal with Washington.

What's so special about shipbuilding that eventually convinced Trump?

1-1. (HWA-GYUN KIM) What, in terms of shipbuilding, are we contributing? Are we building ships? Providing repairs or maintenance? What are we good at? And what do we gain from it?

2. (HANNAH KIM) And 200 billion is being invested in semiconductors, nuclear power, batteries, and biotech ---these are fields in which Korean firms excel.

On top of that, about 100 billion worth of LNG and other energy products will be imported over 3-and-a-half years.

Could this be called the beginning of so-called 'energy diplomacy'?

3. (HWA-GYUN KIM) Japan is investing 550 billion in the U.S., and the EU, 600 billion.

South Korea is pouring in 350 billion dollars.

Would you say this is an appropriate scale of investment considering South Korea's GDP?

4. (HANNAH KIM) Another huge part of Wednesday's deal is that South Korea will get favorable treatment when it comes to future tariffs on semiconductors and pharmaceuticals.

Does that mean we are being specially favored, especially compared to Japan or the EU?

5. (HWA-GYUN KIM) Trump said U.S. products will enter the Korean market tariff‑free.

Will that affect our industries? As far as I understand, tariffs were never a problem for American products to enter Korea.

6. (HANNAH KIM) The tariff deal, fortunately, didn't include anything about defense costs, something that Trump wanted to handle as a one-package deal.

Why was it left out? Could it come up again at any time?

7. (HANNAH KIM) The leaders of South Korea and the U.S. are meeting within the next two weeks.

How will the two sides spend their first face-to-face talks? Talk about the tariff deal? Or the ROK-U.S. alliance?

8. (HWA-GYUN KIM) Countries around the world are facing unprecedented tariff threats from the Trump administration.

In this new world trade order shaped by Trump, how should South Korea respond going forward?

Alright, professor Kim, thanks for sharing your insight as always.

Professor Hannah Kim, thanks so much for your analysis. We appreciate it.