South Korea has proposed measures to enhance shipbuilding cooperation with the United States as part of the ongoing negotiations on the U.S. tariffs, as the August 1 deadline for such a deal nears.
The South Korea’s ministry of trade, industry and energy (MOTIE) announced that the minister Kim Jung-kwan held in-depth discussions with the US side for a “tariff settlement plan,” including ways to strengthen cooperation between Korea and the U.S. in the manufacturing sector such as shipbuilding, semiconductors, and batteries.
The ministry made an announcement on July 25 that Korea’s minister of trade, industry and energy Kim Jung-kwan held in-depth discussions with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick at the US Department of Commerce in Washington D.C., U.S., at 11:30 a.m. (local time) on Thursday, July 24.
MOTIE issued a press release on the same day, stating: “Minister introduced measures to enhance bilateral cooperation in strategic manufacturing sectors such as shipbuilding, semiconductors, and batteries, and strongly requested the need for easing tariffs on items such as automobiles and for mutual tariff reductions, taking these factors into consideration.”
The government confirmed that both parties reaffirmed their commitment to reaching a mutually beneficial agreement before the August 1 tariff deadline and agreed to continue additional negotiations as soon as possible.
The minister also stated, “We will do our utmost to ensure that our companies do not receive disadvantageous treatment compared to our competitors,” and emphasized his will to “consume all our capabilities to produce the best results from the perspective of maximizing national interests by August 1 based on the results of this discussion.”
Earlier this year, the South Korea government announced plans to invest around KRW 222.3bn to support the construction and conversion of a total of 81 eco-friendly ships.
With the support of public and private sector, the government is planning to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the shipping sector by “investing generously” for the development of eco-friendly ships.
The public sector will construct a total of 34 eco-friendly vessels, whilst 15 ships in operation will be retrofitted.
In the private sector, support will be provided for the construction of 20 ships, and financial assistance will be offered for the installation of eco-friendly equipment on 12 vessels to reduce emissions.
