US Announces 'Forced Labor Tariffs' on 60 Countries... South Korea Set at 12.5%

[Anchor]

The United States has announced that it will impose forced labor tariffs on 60 countries. For South Korea, a tariff rate of 12.5% has been finalized.

Correspondent Jeon Byeong-nam reports from Washington.

[Reporter]

Donald Trump's administration has imposed "forced labor tariffs" ranging from 10% to 12.5% on 60 countries, citing Section 301 of the Trade Act.

South Korea, along with nations like Japan, has effectively been assigned a tariff rate of 12.5%.

Previously, after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled existing reciprocal tariffs illegal in February, the Trump administration utilized Section 122 of the Trade Act to impose a 10% global tariff.

As the expiration deadline for Section 122 of the Trade Act approaches tomorrow (July 25), the USTR has decided to apply the new tariffs by leveraging Section 301.

This creates a structure where global tariffs filled the void left by the reciprocal tariffs that were nullified by the illegal ruling, and as the global tariff period expires, they are being replaced once again by Section 301 tariffs.

Meanwhile, the South Korean government has maintained its stance that the tariff rate must not exceed the 15% agreed upon last year.

Separate item-specific tariffs are being applied to steel, aluminum, and automobiles.

Semiconductors are also maintaining a zero-tariff status, as South Korea and the U.S. agreed to ensure treatment no less favorable than that of major competitor nations.

The new tariffs will take effect at midnight tomorrow, Eastern Time.

Amid these developments, the South Korea-U.S. Shipbuilding Cooperation Center for the execution of the "MASGA" project was launched in Washington last night, Korea time.

[Kim Jung-kwan / Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy : What is more important is that this is a symbol of South Korea's strong commitment to supporting the U.S. shipbuilding industry. South Korea strongly supports President Trump's 'American Maritime Action Plan'.]

In particular, stating that warships and liquefied natural gas carriers will be built in the United States, it announced plans to build a robust shipbuilding supply chain within the U.S.

The U.S. effectively pressured South Korea for concrete investment and production outcomes, such as domestic ship production volume.

[Howard Lutnick / U.S. Secretary of Commerce : Just talking about it means nothing. We are not talking about talking about ship production in the U.S., it is about actually building ships within the United States.]

Furthermore, stating that all types of warships and commercial vessels must be built within the U.S., he also expressed a willingness to provide active support.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
(Video Reported by Park Eun-ha | Video Edited by Choi Hye-young)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.