Trade grievances filed with South Korea's FTA support center jumped to 1,526 cases in the first seven months of this year, already surpassing the full-year 2024 total of 1,380 cases, according to data from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.
The spike contrasts sharply with complaints about other major trading partners, which fell by half during the same period. China-related trade issues dropped to 1,787 cases while ASEAN concerns fell to 1,196 cases.
U.S. trade complaints had been declining steadily from 1,746 cases in 2021 to 1,380 in 2023, before this year's dramatic reversal following President Donald Trump's return to the White House in January.
Trump's administration has prioritized protectionist policies, wielding tariffs as a primary tool despite the Korea-U.S. FTA. While Seoul negotiated a reduction in reciprocal tariffs from 25 percent to 15 percent in July, Korean companies still face significantly higher barriers than the duty-free access they previously enjoyed.
"Export companies' FTA utilization rates are steadily rising, but the gap between large corporations and small businesses still reaches 20 percentage points," said Democratic Party lawmaker Heo Jong-sik, who obtained the trade ministry data.
The most common complaints involved certificate of origin issues, accounting for 3,870 cases, followed by product classification problems and tariff rate disputes, highlighting the complex bureaucratic hurdles now facing Korean exporters in their largest overseas market.
reporter
Kim Dong-young
davekim0807@ajupress.com
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