WASHINGTON — President Trump marked the penultimate day of his three-country swing through Asia Wednesday by announcing a trade deal between the US and South Korea — after officials from both countries previously downplayed the prospects of a breakthrough.
“We did, we did. We did reach a deal,” Trump told reporters ahead of a dinner hosted by South Korean President Lee Jae Myung.
A White House fact sheet released Wednesday morning, US time, revealed the deal calls for Korean Air to purchase 103 brand-new Boeing aircraft, along with engines manufactured by Cincinnati-based GE Aerospace, with the total value of the purchases coming to nearly $50 billion.
South Korea has also agreed to purchase 3.3 million tons per year of American liquid natural gas while investing $3 billion over the next five years in US power grid infrastructure.
In all Seoul will sink $350 billion in the US economy, with $200 billion of that amount coming in cash installments of about $20 billion per year, South Korean officials told Reuters.
The remaining $150 billion in loans will go to shipbuilding and port infrastructure investments, with both countries splitting profits 50-50.
Before the announcement, top officials such as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had said that a trade breakthrough with South Korea was unlikely.
“Prospects were not bright even last night, and there was dramatic progress on the day,” Kim Yong-beom, South Korea’s top presidential policy adviser, told reporters.
Back in July, Lee cut a deal with Trump to lower a planned US duty to 15% from 25% on most goods, except copper, steel and aluminum.
However, finalization of the agreement had been dragged out, resulting in Seoul paying 25% tariffs on auto exports into the US.
Lee had previously fretted that South Korea couldn’t afford Trump’s demands, and both countries had been at odds over the details of the proposed $350 billion investment package, with Seoul seeking to use loans rather than cash on hand for the balance of the transaction.
Following Trump’s announcement, South Korea’s currency jumped 0.54% relative to the dollar, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose nearly 300 points in the first half-hour of Wednesday trading.
Trump will cap his Asia swing Thursday with a closely-watched summit meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
With Post wires
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