South Korea will implement measures “to address steel and aluminum trade risks and unfair imports jointly with domestic industries”, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said March 19.

As trade barriers rise around the world, such as the US imposing a 25% tariff on steel without exception from March 12, the government will strengthen trade risk management and support companies to overcome short-term crises, the ministry said.

“First of all, close consultations with major countries with trade issues such as the US, the EU, and India,” the ministry said, highlighting the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism and India’s safeguard investigation of steel imports.

India’s steel imports from South Korea rose 11.7% year over year to 2.44 million mt from April 2024 to January 2025, making it the leading supplier to India during the period.

Also, South Korea will leverage the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency’s (KOTRA) 119 Korea Business Centers in 81 countries that serve as a global business platform for domestic companies seeking to expand internationally.

To prevent unfair trade practices, South Korea will revise its customs regulations and permit the Korea Trade Commission (KTC) to investigate the circumvention of antidumping duties by rerouting products through a third country.

The KTC will establish a 56-member task force by the end of April to address the disguising of imported goods as domestically produced products for domestic distribution or export.

The KTC measure will support “ongoing anti-dumping investigation on hot rolled (flat steel) and thick plates,” the ministry said.

An MTC (mill test certificate) will become a mandatory submission for all steel imports.

The MTC, which is “issued by a company in the production of steel materials, contains more detailed information on the product’s requirements and origin than the existing certificate of origin, so that the current status of steel materials flowing and distributed in Korea can be more accurately tracked, the ministry said.

Looking ahead, a steel industry advancement plan, which contains the blueprint for the future of the steel industry, will “be prepared within this year,” the ministry said. “...in response to the global oversupply, we will focus on new markets such as low-carbon and high-value-added steel materials rather than competing on price and volume,” the ministry said, adding that it will establish low-carbon steel standards.

Also in the works are “plans to promote the creation of a foundation for new markets such as research and development (R&D), human resources, and raw materials (steel scrap),” it said.

The measures come nearly a week after the ministry said March 13 it was working on a response to US steel tariffs.