Trump says he plans to raise tariffs on South Korean goods to 25%.

US President Donald Trump said on Monday he plans to raise tariffs on South Korean goods — including automobiles, lumber and pharmaceuticals — accusing Seoul of failing to honor a previously agreed trade deal with Washington.

The proposed move would lift tariffs from 15 percent to 25 percent. In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump said South Korea’s legislature had not fulfilled its commitments under the agreement.

“I am raising tariffs because the Korean legislature has not enacted our historic trade agreement, which is their prerogative,” he wrote.

South Korea’s presidential office said it had received no prior notice of the planned hike. It added that Trade Minister Kim Jung-kwan, currently in Canada, would travel to Washington to hold talks with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.

Trump’s apparent reversal comes just months after the two countries reached a trade and security deal following tense negotiations. The agreement was finalized after Trump met South Korean President Lee Jae Myung in October and included South Korean investment pledges in exchange for US tariff reductions.

However, the deal has remained in legal limbo in South Korea. In November, Seoul’s presidential office maintained that parliamentary approval was not required, arguing the agreement was a memorandum of understanding rather than a legally binding treaty. A senior official told AFP on Tuesday that authorities were still reviewing whether the pact had been submitted to parliament.

Under the agreement, the United States agreed to cap tariffs on South Korean goods — including vehicles, auto parts and pharmaceuticals — at up to 15 percent, cutting car tariffs from a previous 25 percent. Trump’s latest threat would effectively reverse that reduction if implemented.

Export impact

The auto sector accounts for 27 percent of South Korea’s exports to the United States, which absorbs nearly half of the country’s total car exports. A return to higher tariffs could also put South Korean exporters at a disadvantage compared with competitors such as Japan and the European Union, both of which have secured 15 percent US tariff rates.

The Trump administration has yet to issue formal notices to implement the proposed changes.

The warning to South Korea follows a series of recent tariff threats by Trump against major trading partners. Over the weekend, he cautioned Canada that a trade deal with China could trigger a 100 percent tariff on Canadian goods entering the United States. Earlier this month, he also threatened tariffs on several European countries in connection with his bid to purchase Greenland, though he later retreated from that position.