US-South Korea trade talks halted by Bessent's schedule

Crucial 2+2 ministerial-level trade talks between the US and South Korea scheduled for later this week have been postponed due to Washington's Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's "urgent schedule," Seoul's Finance Ministry said Thursday, Yonhap news reported.

The dialogue planned for Friday in Washington was postponed just an hour before South Korea's Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol and Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo were scheduled to leave for the US capital, ahead of the Aug. 1 negotiation deadline.

"The US has proposed holding talks in the near future, and South Korea and the US will set a new date for talks at the earliest date possible," Finance Ministry spokesperson Kang Young-kyu said.

Koo, who had been waiting for departure at the airport, canceled his planned two-day trip.

Kang, however, emphasized that the US side apologized several times and "clearly" conveyed its intention to reschedule the talks at the "earliest possible" date.

Yeo and Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan, who had already arrived in Washington, are continuing consultations with their US counterparts as originally planned, he added.

The US is set to begin imposing 25% reciprocal tariffs on South Korean goods on Aug. 1, in addition to existing 25% duties on auto and steel imports.

The reciprocal tariffs were initially set to begin on April 9, but President Donald Trump paused them the same day for 90 days to allow negotiations.

He later extended the pause, with the tariffs now scheduled for Aug. 1.