South Korean President Moon Urges 'resolute' Steps Against US Trade Barriers

South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Monday ordered his government to consider all available measures to counter what he called "unfair" US trade safeguards against South Korean product

SEOUL,(UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 19th Feb, 2018 ) :South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Monday ordered his government to consider all available measures to counter what he called "unfair" US trade safeguards against South Korean products, including a dispute settlement process at the World Trade Organization (WTO), Xinhua report said.

"I want you to confidently and resolutely deal with unfair trade protectionist measures by considering filing a formal complaint with the WTO and reviewing possible violation of the Korea-US free trade agreement (FTA), and also actively point out the unfairness of such measures in negotiations to revise the Korea-US FTA," the president said in a weekly meeting with top aides at his office Cheong Wa Dae.

Moon's remarks come after Washington announced plans to slap import tariffs of up to 50 percent on large washing machines and solar cell imports from other countries, including South Korea. The US has also introduced plans to impose high import tariffs on steel products from South Korea and a handful of other countries.

"Last year, our country's exports increased 15.8 percent on-year to mark the highest rate of growth among the world's 10 largest exporting countries while also moving up two notches to become the world's sixth-largest exporter," the president said.

"However, trade protectionism continues to increase amid concerns over jitters in foreign exchange and oil prices. Also, the steel, electronics, solar cell and washing machine industries are expected to face problems in exports despite their global competitiveness due to US trade restrictions against our products," he added.

Moon called for stepped up efforts to support the affected industries. "I urge the government to thoroughly review the possible effect of such measures on exports and come up with comprehensive support measures," he told the meeting, according to Cheong Wa Dae pool reports.