Inside Trade

September 21, 2025

U.S.-Korea FTA News

Senate, House leaders tell business community they won’t stand up to Trump on trade

While the business community and some on Capitol Hill are looking for ways to stop President Trump from a potential NAFTA withdrawal, Republican leaders in the House and Senate have made clear in closed-door meetings they will not face off with the president on trade out of fear they could jeopardize tax reform efforts or spur primary challenges to vulnerable lawmakers in 2018, congressional and private-sector sources told Inside U.S. Trade . Business representatives have asked offices on Capitol...

South Korea to publish report outlining KORUS amendment scenarios this week

South Korea is slated to complete an economic feasibility assessment this week outlining potential amendment areas -- which could include agriculture -- in the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement, according to sources and media reports. In accordance with its statutory requirements for renegotiating trade agreements, South Korea is developing an economic feasibility assessment that reportedly outlines amendment scenarios including possible greater market openness in the agriculture, investment and services sectors, a Korean news service, the Hankyoreh reported last week. One “major...

Sources, analysts say Trump administration lacks effective trade strategy for Asia trip

President Trump is set to meet with key trading partners in Asia without a coherent and effective strategy to achieve positive outcomes for the U.S., multiple sources and trade analysts have told Inside U.S. Trade -- adding that U.S. trade officials are not pushing China to make changes to its industrial policy in a bid to build a narrative that supports the case for tougher action in the future. Trump, they said, will meet with leaders in the region who...

Report: South Korean trade minister asks for authority to kill KORUS if talks falter

South Korean Trade Minister Kim Hyun-chong wants the authority to terminate the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement if talks with the U.S. do not go well, according to a report out of Seoul. Yonhap reports that Kim also asked the president to “sharply beef up his team” as it prepares for more intense discussions with the U.S., which has asked to amend the deal after President Trump railed against it and the U.S. trade deficit with South Korea. More from the...

South Korean lawmaker says ‘no need’ for KORUS revision, pitches deficit fix

Senior conservative South Korean lawmaker Hong Jun-Pyo on Thursday expressed concern over the country’s leadership as talks on the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement proceed, saying there was “no need” for the pact to be renegotiated and contending that bilateral “deficit issues” – cited by the U.S. in demanding improvements – could be solved by boosting natural gas imports. Hong, chairman of the Liberty Korea Party, visited Washington, DC, this week to meet with U.S. officials to discuss the escalating nuclear...

After Trump visits, South Korea to hold public hearing on KORUS

Two days after President Trump completes a two-day visit to South Korea, the government there will hold a public hearing on the U.S.-Korea free trade agreement. The Yonhap news service reports that the Nov. 10 hearing is part of the country's statutory process for renegotiating trade deals. Trump will be in South Korea Nov. 7-8. The president has repeatedly said the trade deal with South Korea is grossly unfair to the U.S. and must be renegotiated or terminated. More on...

U.S., South Korean business groups call for more involvement in KORUS talks

The U.S.-Korea Business Council and the Federation of Korean Industries are calling on negotiators from the two countries to consult more with the private sector as talks on the U.S.-Korea free trade agreement progress. In an Oct. 11 joint statement , the two business groups argued that the uncertainty around the KORUS renegotiation “impacts our day-to-day business decisions” – and, because they see themselves as primary stakeholders in the talks, they want to be more involved. “As our two governments...

Report: South Korea says it can employ KORUS withdrawal threats, too

“The U.S. is not the only one who can use scrapping the FTA as a negotiation tactic.” According to a report out of South Korea , Seoul's government delivered that message to a lawmaker this week as the country's parliament gears up to review the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement. Korea Business reports: Ahead of the pre-arranged parliamentary audit on October 13, the Ministry of Trade declared in a written answer to lawmaker Chanyeol Lee from the People’s Party, “Even...

Fight brewing in South Korea's parliament over KORUS talks

After the United States and South Korea agreed to address implementation issues and potential amendments to their free trade agreement last week, opposition parties in Korea's National Assembly began taking the government to task. “The Moon Jae-in administration did not follow the due procedure before making it an accomplished fact that the KORUS FTA will be revised,” People’s Party Floor Leader Rep. Kim Dong-cheol said, according to the Korea Herald. “By sticking to groundless and unrealistic optimism and no...

Former KORUS negotiator encouraged by second special session

Wendy Cutler, former U.S. chief negotiator for the U.S.-Korea free trade agreement, last week said she was encouraged after a special session of the deal's joint committee and outlined steps she thinks Korea and the U.S. should take to smooth relations. The Oct. 4 session, co-chaired by U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and South Korean Trade Minister Hyun-chong Kim, was the second held since President Trump in June announced he wanted to renegotiate the deal. After its conclusion, Lighthizer said...

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