South Korean government evaluates US extension of ”reciprocal tariff” imposition de facto until August 1st... ”Good performance” compared to Japan

Regarding U.S. President Donald Trump's announcement on the 7th (local time) that he would impose a 25% "reciprocal tariff" on all Korean products from August 1st of this year, the South Korean government said, "De facto,
"We will consider this a mutual tariff moratorium and will accelerate negotiations to reach a mutually beneficial outcome in the remaining period," he said.
The day before (local time), President Trump published a letter on his social media account "Truth Social" that specified the reciprocal tariff rates and the effective date for South Korea.
"Unfortunately, our relationship has been far from reciprocity," he said, adding, "Starting August 1, 2025, all Korean products sent to the United States will be subject to just two additional tariffs, in addition to the existing item-specific tariffs.
The letter was sent to President Lee Jae-myung. The 25% tariff rate was announced by President Trump on April 2nd of this year.
President Trump initially granted a 90-day grace period on the imposition of reciprocal tariffs on April 9, and since then trade negotiations have been proceeding with South Korea with only a basic 10% tariff applied.
However, this time, the government has indicated its intention to impose a 25% former tax rate after August 1st unless a new agreement is reached between the United States and South Korea.
This will maintain the 25% reciprocal tariff rate that was originally scheduled to be applied from the 9th.
The Trump administration believes that South Korea has engaged in the US-South Korea trade negotiations in good faith, and is therefore more willing to accept an agreed-upon tariff rate than to impose a 25% reciprocal tariff.
Since the new administration took office, Yeo Han-koo, director of the trade negotiation bureau at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, has visited the U.S. twice to hold negotiations.
However, it has been pointed out that there was a time constraint. Meanwhile, Japan, which has held more than seven rounds of ministerial-level negotiations, has also announced that it will impose a 25% tariff (mutual tariff) on all Japanese products destined for the United States from August 1.
The 25% tariff is a one-point increase from the 24% reciprocal tariff that President Trump had initially set for Japan, and on the same day, South Korea
The tariff rate was set at the same rate as that stated in the letter sent to the US. In this respect, the South Korean government has evaluated that, compared to Japan, it "avoided the worst-case scenario and put up a good fight."
The ministry said, "After the new administration was inaugurated, in the short time since it was formed, we have engaged in fierce negotiations based on the principle of prioritizing national interests, but in reality,
"It is true that there was not enough time to reach an agreement on all issues," he said, alluding to the difficulty of the negotiations. "With this letter, the de facto moratorium on mutual tariffs will be in place until August 1.
"We have determined that the deadline has been extended, and we will step up negotiations to quickly resolve the uncertainty caused by the tariffs and reach a mutually beneficial outcome in the remaining time," he said.
"In addition, in parallel with the improvement of domestic systems and streamlining of regulations to eliminate the trade deficit, which is the main concern of the U.S. side, we will work to promote the 'Manufacturing Renaissance Partnership' between the two countries,"
"We plan to use this opportunity to help major industries make a leap forward through the partnership," he said.
The government plans to hold an emergency meeting to examine the impact of the move on the industry.