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[Alpha Biz=(Chicago) Reporter Paul Lee] The South Korean and U.S. trade ministers met in Seoul to focus on trade issues, including the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and the CHIPS Act.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said on the 30th that Trade Minister Ahn Duk-geun met with Catherine Tai, the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), who visited Seoul to attend a meeting in the India-Pacific region for the second democratic summit, and held a meeting of South Korea-U.S. trade ministers. It is the first time in about a year and four months that the trade ministers of the two countries have met in Korea since November 2021.
Ahn called for detailed guidelines and guardrail clauses for applying for semiconductor production facility investment subsidies recently announced by the U.S. to fully reflect the opinions of the Korean government and companies so that they do not act as an excessive burden on Korean companies. South Korea's semiconductor industry is facing growing concerns over technology leaks as the U.S. government calls for the U.S. government to submit information on yields, which are considered trade secrets, in order to receive subsidies for investment in semiconductors on the 27th (local time).
Ahn assessed that the two countries have achieved results in easing uncertainties through high-level talks with the Korea-U.S. IRA consultation channel since September last year, but also asked them to reflect our industry's position as much as possible in the process of operating the IRA guidance (sub-regulation) in the future.
It also called for increased flexibility in Section 232 of the Steel Trade Expansion Act and continued cooperation to reduce carbon in the steel sector. South Korea has signed a quota agreement with the Trump administration to limit exports instead of imposing 25% steel tariffs, but is calling for renegotiation after the Biden administration decided to lift tariffs on certain quantities with the European Union (EU) and Japan, which did not choose quotas.
In response to the demand, Thai is said to have expressed his theoretical stance that he will work closely with South Korea on major trade issues, including the IRA and the Peninsula Act.
During the meeting, the two trade ministers promised to focus their capabilities on producing the results of the ongoing Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) negotiations and actively cooperate in preparing inclusive norms in the trade sector and reforming the World Trade Organization (WTO).
In particular, they agreed on the need to produce stronger future-oriented cooperation to mark the 70th anniversary of the South Korea-U.S. alliance this year.
AlphaBIZ 폴리(hoondork1977@alphabiz.co.kr)
