According to Yonhap News,

South Korea and the United States are continuing last-minute trade negotiations on areas including semiconductors, batteries and biotechnology on top of in-depth discussions on shipbuilding cooperation, the presidential office said Wednesday.

Kim Yong-bum, the presidential chief of staff for policy, made the remarks as top Seoul officials are visiting Washington in an all-out diplomatic effort to finalize a trade deal with the U.S. before Friday's deadline, when the 25 percent reciprocal tariffs and sector-specific duties will take effect.

"In-depth discussions are under way in the shipbuilding industry, while negotiations are also continuing in areas such as semiconductors, secondary batteries, and biotechnology," Kim said in a briefing.

Earlier in the day, President Lee Jae Myung held a video conference with Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol, Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan and Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo, who were in Washington, as well as Cho Hyun, who was visiting Tokyo, to receive briefings on the latest developments in trade talks.

Lee told the officials in the U.S. to "squarely" engage in negotiations on behalf of the Korean people despite the tough circumstances, presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said in a written briefing.

The Seoul government said earlier it was taking a close look at Japan's trade deal with the U.S., which lowered the 25 percent reciprocal tariffs to 15 percent in exchange for market access to autos and rice as well as a $550 billion investment pledge.

Cho will travel from Tokyo to Washington for talks with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and to support the last-minute tariff negotiations.

Seoul has proposed a shipbuilding cooperation initiative, tentatively titled Make American Shipbuilding Great Again (MASGA), which envisions major South Korean investments to help revitalize the U.S. shipbuilding industry amid intensifying competition from China.

South Korea is pitching a comprehensive package that includes industrial cooperation in other major areas, as its export-reliant economy could be hit by the steep tariffs unless a deal is reached.

Kim said the government is also negotiating market access for U.S. agricultural and livestock products with full awareness of the sensitivities surrounding the sector.

"Our principle is to put the national interest first and ensure that South Korea and the U.S. achieve mutually beneficial outcomes within a range we can reasonably bear," he said, without elaborating further.

As the deadline looms, Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung flew to Washington earlier in the day, joining Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong and Hanwha Group Vice Chairman Kim Dong-kwan, who were already in the U.S. to support the ongoing trade negotiations.

The presidential aide said that the business leaders had "voluntarily" traveled to the U.S., given the potential impact of the proposed tariffs on their companies and the broader economy, and lent support to the ongoing negotiations.

"Private companies are leveraging their extensive networks in the U.S., while sharing, when necessary, the basic direction of the government's overarching negotiating framework from the perspective of the private sector," he said.


ejkim@yna.co.kr

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Source: Yonhap News (July 30, 2025)