Anchor: The United States is increasing the number of import items subject to its 50 percent steel and aluminum tariffs, a move that is expected to raise the tariff burden for South Korean businesses. Seoul’s trade ministry has pledged to increase state support to help them cope with the change. 
Choi You Sun reports.

Report: The United States currently imposes a 15 percent tariff on most imports from South Korea, but steel and aluminum imports are subject to a 50 percent rate.

And last week the Donald Trump administration announced plans to widen the scope of its steel and aluminum tariffs to include hundreds of derivative products.

In a Federal Register notice on Friday, the Department of Commerce said the Bureau of Industry and Security was adding 407 product codes to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States subject to duties on the steel and aluminum content of those products.

The number of products affected by the change surpasses one-thousand in total.

The department said existing country-specific rates will apply for goods that do not contain steel or aluminum.

This means if an auto part is 50 percent steel, half its price will be subject to the 50 percent rate, while the 15 percent rate applies to the other half.

While the change took force Monday afternoon Korea Standard Time, starting with imports that have received clearance in the U.S. or been taken out of bonded warehouses, it is still unclear exactly which items will be included and how the steel and aluminum content will be measured.

The South Korean government reportedly tried to convince Washington that the country’s products do not threaten U.S. national security, but the Trump administration pushed ahead with the additions to reflect demand from American industries.

Seoul’s trade ministry, meanwhile, has pledged to increase state support for affected South Korean businesses, such as by expanding administrative assistance for content verification and certification of a product’s origin.
Choi You Sun, KBS World Radio News.