Seoul: A South Korean trade association on Monday urged U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer to delay the implementation of proposed tariffs targeting South Korea due to forced labor concerns, or to reduce the tariffs, emphasizing that Seoul strictly prohibits forced labor through international treaties and domestic laws.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Korea International Trade Association (KITA) Chairman Yoon Jin-sik submitted a formal comment as the USTR recently proposed a 12.5 percent tariff on South Korea and other economies, citing their alleged failure to enforce bans on imports made with forced labor. This tariff proposal follows trade investigations conducted by the USTR into 60 countries, including South Korea, China, and Japan, under Section 301 of the 1974 Trade Act. The Trump administration is seeking to replace "reciprocal" tariffs that the Supreme Court struck down in February.
"We request that the United States defer the implementation of any additional duties on products from Korea, providing an opportunity for both countries to discuss bilateral cooperation and regulatory alignments," Yoon wrote in his comment. He added that if deferral is not possible, the U.S. should reduce Korea's additional duty rate to 10 percent, matching the rate applied to economies that have confirmed their cooperation with U.S. efforts or have made commitments regarding a forced labor import prohibition.
Yoon also called for the exclusion of certain products from any proposed tariffs, particularly those with a low risk of forced labor involvement or lacking specific evidence of an association with South Korea or material injury to U.S. commerce. He emphasized that while South Korea does not impose an explicit import prohibition on goods involving forced labor, as defined by the USTR, it "strictly" prohibits forced labor by ratifying relevant international treaties and enforcing domestic laws.
The chairman noted that South Korea's regulatory regimes may not explicitly prohibit imports of goods produced with forced labor, but they show that the country proactively addresses and regulates forced labor through legal frameworks and enforcement policies. He also pointed out the "insufficient evidence" that the absence of an explicit forced labor prohibition in South Korea burdens U.S. commerce.
"There is no clear evidence demonstrating that goods produced with forced labor directly compete with U.S. products in the Korean market. Furthermore, the USTR report does not identify specific cases where forced labor goods were transshipped to the U.S. through Korea, or where such goods distorted the U.S. market," Yoon stated. He concluded by asserting the difficulty in establishing specific cases or causal relationships indicating that certain Korean products have caused material injury to any U.S. company by utilizing inputs produced with forced labor.