South Korea To Hold Emergency Meeting On US Auto Tariffs

(MENAFN- IANS) Seoul, March 27 (IANS) The government will hold an emergency meeting with local automotive companies on Thursday to discuss the possible impact of the US administration's plan to start imposing auto tariffs next week, the industry ministry said.

The meeting, to be chaired by Industry Minister Ahn Duk-geun, will be held later in the day with the attendance of officials from major automobile companies here, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

The planned meeting comes shortly after U.S. President Donald Trump said his administration will start imposing 25 percent tariffs on all imported cars, light trucks and key parts, such as engines and transmissions, on April 2 and begin collecting them the next day, reports Yonhap news agency.

The move is expected to deal a major blow to the South Korean car manufacturers and the global automotive industry in general.

In 2024, Seoul exported $34.7 billion worth of automobiles to the United States, which accounted for almost half of the country's total auto exports for the year.

Industry leaders, Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp., exported a combined 970,000 vehicles last year, and GM Korea Co., the South Korean unit of General Motors Co., also sold 410,000 cars overseas.

Shares of Hyundai Motor and Kia had slid 3.38 percent and 2.07 percent, respectively, on the main Seoul bourse as of 9:15 a.m., underperforming the broader Korea Composite Stock Price Index's 0.64 percent drop.

Meanwhile, Seoul shares extended their losses on Thursday morning as concerns mounted following the U.S. administration's announcement on its plan to impose tariffs on all imported cars.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) had lost 25.58 points, or 0.97 per cent, to 2,618.36 as of 11:20 a.m.

Overnight, major U.S. indexes lost ground, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite sliding 2.04 per cent, as Nvidia, Tesla and other blue chip tech shares sharply went down.

Hyundai Mobis, an auto-parts making affiliate of Hyundai Motor, also plummeted 3.68 per cent.

-IANS

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