Anchor: South Korea’s automobile exports to the U.S. are expected to take a hit from reciprocal tariffs, since Washington has identified the country as one of those with which it is seeing trade deficits. 
Our Bae Joo-yon has more. 

Report: The United States appears intent on slapping tariffs on South Korean cars, with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick suggesting that Washington’s reciprocal tariffs could affect the auto industries in South Korea, Japan and Germany when they take effect April 2.

In an interview with Fox Business on Friday, Lutnik said that if tariffs are to be levied on auto imports, they should be subject to cars from all over the world and no country should have an unfair advantage.

Last year South Korean carmakers sold more cars in the U.S. than U.S. carmakers sold in South Korea, resulting in an industry trade surplus of some 40 billion dollars. 

If South Korean cars are subject to reciprocal tariffs, the nation’s automakers are likely to make more cars in the U.S., a move that the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade says will result in a 20 percent decline in South Korean auto exports to the U.S. 

The institute’s senior researcher Kim Kyung-yoo said shipments of up to 900-thousand vehicles to the U.S. could be affected if the tariffs are put in place, in that Hyundai and Kia currently export up to 500-thousand vehicles to the U.S. while GM Korea ships some 400-thousand vehicles. 

He added that the auto parts industry will likely suffer ramifications. 

The government has said it will announce response measures next month, but it faces a dilemma as the U.S. government could again change its policies on tariffs. 
Bae Joo-yon, KBS World Radio News.