KORUS Renegotiation Update -

As we have reported previously, United States Trade Representative (USTR) Robert Lighthizer formally notified Korea in July that the U.S. requested a special Joint Committee meeting under the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement (KORUS) to start the process of negotiating to remove barriers to U.S. trade and consider amendments to the agreement. USTR’s action was consistent with the Trump Administration’s stated objective of reducing the trade deficit. KORUS entered into force in March 2002 and, from 2011 to 2016, the U.S. trade deficit in goods with Korea more than doubled from $13.2 billion to $27.6 billion. This edition provides you with an update on the current status of KORUS renegotiations.

KORUS Joint Committee special sessions took place in Seoul, South Korea, on August 22, 2017, and in Washington, D.C., on October 4, 2017. At the conclusion of last month’s session, USTR Lighthizer stated that he “initiated Joint Committee discussions at the direction of the President to improve outcomes under this agreement for all Americans. I now look forward to intensified engagement with Korea in an expeditious manner to resolve outstanding implementation issues as well as to engage soon on amendments that will lead to fair, reciprocal trade.”