Trade talks before tariff deadline

[Anchor]

Just before his departure, Deputy Prime Minister of Economy Ku Yun-cheol had to turn back due to the cancellation of negotiations with the United States. Now, he is scheduled to meet with the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury on the 31st.

Since this meeting is just one day before the deadline for the tariff negotiations announced by the U.S., it is expected to be a cliffhanger negotiation.

The government is mobilizing not only economic but also diplomatic channels for a last-minute response, but the tight schedule poses the biggest challenge.

Today (July 27), President Yoon Suk-yeol cleared his official schedule to receive updates on the negotiations and ordered that talks be conducted with national interests at the forefront.

This is Bang Jun-won reporting.

[Report]

The presidential office held a trade policy meeting for two consecutive days, which concluded yesterday (July 26).

Although there were no public meetings scheduled today, with it being the weekend, President Lee Jae Myung continued to receive updates frequently on the related progress.

[Kang Yu-jung/Spokesperson for the Presidential Office: "You can say that the President is receiving reports almost 24 hours a day, even though his schedule is officially closed."]

The Minister of Industry and the head of the Trade Negotiation Headquarters, who are currently in the U.S., continued behind-the-scenes discussions. It is reported that the Chief of Policy and the National Security Advisor also reviewed final response strategies.

Currently, negotiations are more focused on trade issues, with key points being the opening of agricultural and livestock markets and cooperation in the shipbuilding industry.

As the U.S. pushes for greater market openings for rice and beef, we need to leverage the shipbuilding industry, which the U.S. is interested in, to offset the pressure.

[Kang Yu-jung/Spokesperson for the Presidential Office: "The President has instructed to engage in negotiations that can provide the greatest benefits to our country, keeping in mind the very complex and diverse situations in the world today."]

With U.S.-China tariff negotiations scheduled for tomorrow (July 28) and the following day (July 29), the actual time left until the U.S. deadline on August 1 is effectively just two days.

Deputy Prime Minister Ku Yun-cheol will meet with U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent on the 31st, and Foreign Minister Park Jin will also meet separately with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

With projections that reciprocal tariffs of 25% could lead to a maximum decrease of 0.4% in real GDP, the government plans to mobilize both economic and diplomatic channels for a full-scale effort to reach a last-minute agreement.

This is KBS News, Bang Jun-won.