Industry minister likely to visit U.S. as early as next week for tariff negotiations

Industry Minister Ahn Duk-geun could visit the United States as early as next week for negotiations with Washington over its reciprocal tariffs, a government official said Monday.

Ahn’s expected trip comes as Seoul seeks an exemption from the U.S.’ global tariffs, including a 25 percent duty on South Korea, which the Trump administration put on hold last week for 90 days except for China.

“Depending on how the schedule is coordinated, the timing could be somewhat adjusted,” a government official told Yonhap News Agency. “A trip to the U.S. could happen as early as next week.”

Earlier Monday, acting President Han Duck-soo said the government would organize a negotiating team centered around Ahn to push for negotiations with U.S. officials at an early date.

Ahn visited the U.S. in February and March, and met key officials, including Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, for talks on industrial cooperation, such as in the shipbuilding sector.

Ahn’s forthcoming trip is expected to focus on requesting U.S. officials to ease or exempt South Korea from the reciprocal tariffs, and explain Seoul’s efforts to resolve non-tariff barriers that Washington takes issue with.