The Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, Ahn Duk-geun, presented the timetable in a meeting with executives of the country’s main steel companies, and affirmed that the central administration will respond firmly to any attempt of unfair trade practices.

Not only the United States, but other major economies, such as India and the European Union, are also raising trade barriers in the steel industry, demonstrating the increasing trend amid the global expansion of trade protectionism, Ahn said.

In order to respond to such a scenario, the government is working to reinforce trade safeguard measures, including strengthening the supervision of imported goods and the evasion of anti-dumping measures on unfairly imported products, he added.

The Ministry of Industry recently decided to expand the South Korean Trade Commission and set up two new departments to investigate dumping.

Dumping or unfair competition refers to the practice of selling below the normal price, or at prices below cost, in order to eliminate competition and take over the market.

Starting Wednesday, President Donald Trump’s administration imposed tariffs of 25 percent on all steel imports, including those from South Korea.

It also imposed duties on 87 steel and aluminum products, and eliminated duty-free quotas on steel imports from South Korea and other countries.

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