Business leaders from S. Korea, U.S. call for bilateral cooperation

The delegation of the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI) has said that it asked the United States to exempt South Korea from future tariffs on autos and received a positive response. The FKI and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce will also propose that the governments of South Korea and the United States should refrain from conducting acts that would undermine the alliance.

Huh Chang-soo, the chairman of GS Group and head of the FKI, who was in Washington D.C. to attend the 31st general meeting of businessmen from the two countries co-hosted by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, told reporters that it seems the U.S. side gave positive responses to South Korean businessmen’s demand for an exemption. Still, it may differ depending on the interpretation of the remarks, he added.

The FKI delegation comprised of some 20 businessmen also met with U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Manufacturing Ian Steff and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Trade Policy and Negotiations David Meale. They actively sought South Korea’s exemption from tariffs (on cars) based on Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act, which will be decided by the U.S. administration in November, Huh said.

Business leaders from both countries also adopted a joint declaration on the same day, saying that an economic or political crack at the time of increased geopolitical instability in Asia would undermine bilateral cooperation. They also highlighted that the South Korea-U.S. free trade agreement (FTA) has played an important role for the alliance, and called on the two countries to refrain from conducing acts that damage the bilateral alliance.


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