Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

Trade Minister meets U.S. Representative Carol Miller

Minister for Trade Yeo Han-koo met U.S. Representative Carol Miller (R-WV) on June 25 (local time) in Washington D.C. to discuss bilateral trade issues. Trade Minister Yeo expressed commitment to establishing mutually beneficial Korea-U.S. trade relations and asked for support in facilitating a stable and predictable business environment for Korean companies with regard to the U.S.’ One Big Beautiful Bill Act. date2025-06-27

Trade Minister meets U.S. Representative Adrian Smith

Minister for Trade Yeo Han-koo met Adrian Smith (R-NE), Chair of the Subcommittee on Trade of the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means, on June 25 (local time) in Washington D.C. to discuss bilateral trade issues. Trade Minister Yeo expressed commitment to establishing mutually beneficial Korea-U.S. trade relations and asked for support in facilitating a stable and predictable business environment for Korean companies with regard to the U.S.’ One Big Beautiful Bill Act. date2025-06-27

Trade Minister meets White House Trade Advisor

Korea’s Minister for Trade Yeo Han-koo met with Benjamin LeRoy, the White House Special Advisor on International Trade and Finance to the U.S. Vice President, on June 25 (local time) in Washington D.C. to discuss bilateral trade issues and mutually beneficial solutions. date2025-06-26

Korea Trade Commission holds 461st meeting

The Korea Trade Commission (KTC) under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) held the 461st KTC meeting today at the Government Complex Sejong for deliberation and resolution on anti-dumping investigations. Regarding the investigations initiated last September on Chinese stainless steel plates, the KTC gave the determination that dumped imports of these products have caused material injury to the domestic industry and decided to propose a five-year anti-dumping duty of 21.62% to Korea’s economy and finance minister. The said products are currently subject to a provisional anti-dumping duty of 21.62%, effective since March 2025. The KTC also held a public hearing on domestic industries’ injury from dumped imports of Chinese sodium dithionite and Thai particle boards, for which anti-dumping investigations opened last December, to grant interested parties sufficient opportunity to make statements and ensure their rights of defense prior to the final determination. Chinese sodium dithionite is currently subject to a provisional anti-dumping duty ranging from 15.15% to 33.97% (June 21–October 20, 2025). As for Thai particle boards, the provisional duty of between 11.82% and 17.19% proposed by the KTC is under review by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. Both said products await final determinations in the latter half of this year following domestic and overseas due diligence procedures.   date2025-06-26

Korea’s retail industry grows 7.0% in May

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) announced today that Korea’s retail industry grew 7.0 percent year-on-year overall during the month of May 2025, with offline and online sales gaining 0.9 percent and 13.0 percent, respectively. MOTIE's monthly retail sales figures are based on surveys of 23 major retailers. Thirteen of them are brick-and-mortar retailers: three department store chains, three hypermarket chains, three convenience store chains, and four super supermarket (SSMs) operators. The remaining 10 are online retailers. By offline retail channel, sales at hypermarkets (up 0.2 percent) and department stores (up 2.3 percent) posted growth for the first time since the Seollal holiday season in January, led by high-priced items and increased revenue per visit. Convenience stores inched down 0.2 percent, whereas SSM operators (up 1.0 percent) maintained their upward trajectory for the third consecutive month, driven by the steady rise of visitors. By category, offline sales expanded in areas like food products (up 1.0 percent) and luxury goods (up 8.1 percent) such as jewelry and watches. In contrast, home appliances/culture (down 7.8 percent), kids/sports (down 2.5 percent), and fashion/miscellaneous (down 3.7 percent) experienced further slowdowns. As for online sales, services (up 37.3 percent) and food products (up 18.2 percent) retained solid growth on the backs of demand for food deliveries, e-coupons, travel packages, and cultural goods. However, fashion/clothing (down 4.6 percent) and sports (down 12.7 percent) continued their contraction.   date2025-06-25

Trade Minister meets Canada’s Ambassador to the U.S.

Korea’s Minister for Trade Yeo Han-koo met Canada’s Ambassador to the U.S. Kirsten Hillman on June 24 (local time) in Washington D.C. to discuss trade issues. date2025-06-25

Trade Minister Yeo visits The Asia Group

Korea’s Minister for Trade Yeo Han-koo visited The Asia Group (TAG) in Washington D.C. on June 24 (local time) to discuss Korea-U.S. trade issues with TAG CEO Nirav Patel. date2025-06-25

Trade Minister meets U.S. Commerce Secretary & Trade Rep

Korea’s Minister for Trade Yeo Han-koo met with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on June 23 (local time) during his first visit to Washington D.C. since taking office to discuss bilateral trade issues and mutually beneficial cooperation measures. date2025-06-24

Trade Minister Yeo visits Washington D.C. for high-level trade talks

Korea’s Minister for Trade Yeo Han-koo is making his first trip to Washington D.C. (starting June 22) since taking office to engage in ministerial-level Korea-U.S. consultations with key U.S. officials including U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick for discussions on U.S. tariff measures and mutually beneficial solutions. Moreover, Trade Minister Yeo will be conveying Korea’s stance on U.S. tariff measures to U.S. lawmakers while also requesting the U.S. Congress’ support in facilitating a stable and predictable environment for Korean businesses investing in the U.S. with regard to the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” which contains amendments to tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA). Trade Minister Yeo stated that he will give full measure to gain mutually beneficial outcomes through in-depth consultations between the two countries. In view of the two sides’ close economic and industrial integration, the trade minister highlighted that he seeks to expand the friendly foothold in the U.S. for Korean businesses on the occasion of this visit to support Korean companies’ business activities. Meanwhile, Korea’s Deputy Minister for International Trade and Investment Park Jung-sung is accompanying the trade minister to Washington D.C. to lead Korea’s recently launched task force (TF) on Korea-U.S. trade negotiations in the third round of technical discussions with U.S. Trade Representative Greer from June 24–26. In this round, the TF and relevant ministries will aim to reach mutually acceptable solutions on both sides’ issues of interest.   date2025-06-23

Trade Minister meets AMCHAM Korea Chairman and CEO

Minister for Trade Yeo Han-koo met AMCHAM Korea Chairman and CEO James Kim on June 19 in Seoul to discuss Korea-U.S. trade issues. date2025-06-23