The Presidential Office said Friday it will negotiate to minimize the impact on Korean companies following the Trump administration's semiconductor tariff executive order, in accordance with the "no less favorable treatment" principle stated in the Korea-US joint fact sheet.
"When we released the Korea-US joint fact sheet last year, we specified that Korea would receive 'conditions no less favorable than major countries' regarding semiconductors," the Presidential Office said in a statement. "We plan to closely analyze the recently concluded semiconductor agreement between the US and Taiwan, communicate with industry, and continue negotiations with the US side."
Korea and the US last year agreed to mutual 15% tariff reductions tied to Korean investments in shipbuilding and advanced industries in the US. The US committed that Korea would receive "treatment no less favorable than competitors" on semiconductor tariffs. However, analysts note this amounts to only a "principled commitment." The government has decided to continuously verify how existing Korea-US agreements are being implemented.
President Trump signed an executive order at the White House on January 14 imposing 25% tariffs on semiconductors including Nvidia's AI chip H200 that are imported to the US and re-exported to other countries. The order primarily targets semiconductors produced at Taiwan's TSMC, imported to the US, and re-exported elsewhere. H200 chips are entirely exported to China. The White House signaled a second phase, stating Trump "may impose broader tariffs on imports of semiconductors and derivative products to encourage domestic manufacturing in the near future, and may introduce corresponding tariff offset programs."
Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo said upon returning from a US visit Thursday, "Memory chips, which are the primary exports of our companies, are excluded." He added, "The impact on Korea will be limited, but we cannot be complacent since we don't know when or in what form the second-phase measures will come."
Meanwhile, as reports emerged that the government explained Korea's position on the Coupang matter to the US, the Presidential Office reiterated that it is inappropriate to escalate the Coupang-related investigation into a diplomatic or trade conflict. "The Coupang matter involves an unprecedented scale of personal data breach, and relevant authorities are conducting investigations according to applicable laws," a Presidential Office official said. "It is inappropriate to expand this into a Korea-US diplomatic or trade issue, and we plan to continue explaining this to the US side."
Earlier media reports indicated the US Trade Representative's Office expressed strong concerns about the Coupang investigation, reportedly asking "Are you trying to bankrupt them?" Trade Minister Yeo explained, "I emphasized that what matters is not whether it's a US or Korean company, but that this is a case where we are conducting a transparent investigation without discrimination according to our laws and procedures regarding an unprecedented scale of personal data breach."
