According to a report today from Reuters, South Korean steelmaker Dongkuk Steel announced that it would temporarily halt April exports to the US while the country seeks exemptions to the Section 232 tariffs.
“We haven’t decided yet whether or not we will continue to stop exporting our products to US,” a company spokesman said.
On Monday, South Korea’s finance minister said the country will “deploy all possible means” to respond to the decision to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. The US has so far granted exemptions to Canada and Mexico, offering the possibility of granting exemptions to other allies. Australia is reportedly on Trump’s list of possibilities, while the EU, Brazil, Japan, and South Korea are actively lobbying.
In 2017, the US imported 3.62 million tons of steel from South Korea at a value of $2.95 billion, with over half the tonnage comprised of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) and line pipe.