U.S. President Donald Trump has reportedly rejected South Korea's offer to raise its contribution to shared defense costs by at least 13 percent from the previous year.

Reuters news agency reported on Friday that according to two current and former U.S. officials, Trump rejected what was probably Seoul’s best offer ahead of its mid-April parliamentary elections.

Sources said Trump’s decision came after consultations with Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. NBC News reported earlier that the two visited the White House on March 31 for talks to prevent the furlough of Korean workers employed by U.S. Forces Korea. 

Given that the furlough went ahead on April 1, there has been speculation that Trump's last-minute opposition may have been a factor that prevented a deal. 

Reuters also said Esper called his South Korean counterpart on April 6 to press Seoul to quickly agree to a much higher contribution.

But U.S. sources privately say there appears to be little hope of clinching a new agreement in the coming days, even as the coronavirus outbreak threatens to undermine U.S.-South Korean military readiness.