On March 26, 2018, the S. Korean Ministry of Trade and Industry announced that the US and S. Korea and reach agreement “in principle” to amend the terms of the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement (frequently referred to as “KORUS”). The agreement would result in S. Korea being exempted from the US recently announced steel tariffs, but would be subject to a steel quota equal to about 2.68 million tons, or 70 percent of the average exports to the U.S. over the previous three years. South Korea was the third largest steel exporter to the U.S. as of 2017
The US would be able to extend its normal 25% duty on Korean pick up trucks until 2041 (20 years longer than originally agreed) and would be allowed to send an additional 25,000 US autos that meet US safety standards to S. Korea without meeting Korean safety standards. The Korean Trade minister said that the number of US vehicles imported to South Korea under the allowance hovered below 10,000 units last year. S. Korea will also consider the US standards when it revises its standards. Korean negotiators rejected demands for a higher US content requirement.
