South Korea has asked the United States to exclude South Korean washers from any remedy measure, noting that U.S. public interest will be hurt by the imposition of safeguard measures.

“The Korean government would like to emphasize that safeguard measures should be taken with caution as they are imposed against fair trade,” said Yeo Han-koo, minister-counselor at the Korean Embassy in Washington, in a hearing brief that was submitted Dec. 11.

He also said South Korean imports should be excluded from any remedy measure as recommended by the U.S. International Trade Commission “since imports from Korea are not a substantial cause of serious injury or threat thereof.”

The South Korean hearing brief posted on the website of the Federal eRulemaking Portal at regulations.gov. came before the Trade Policy Staff Committee holds a public hearing on Jan. 3.

Yeo also said in the hearing brief that the products of Samsung and LG, as well as washer parts that the U.S. domestic industry does not manufacture, cannot be subject to any safeguard measure.

Last month, the International Trade Commission recommended a 50 percent tariff rate on large residential washers built by Samsung and LG, and exceeding a quota of 1.2 million units.

The recommendation came in response to a safeguard petition filed by U.S.-based Whirlpool in May. The commission determined in October that the Samsung and LG washers were having an adverse impact on the domestic industry.

Whirlpool said on Dec. 11 that U.S. President Donald Trump should impose a 50 percent tariff on finished washers, put South Korea under the remedy and implement effective anti-circumvention measures, including a quota on in-scope parts.

“The president needs to craft a safeguard remedy that is robust and without loopholes,” Whirlpool said.

Trump is expected to make a decision early next year.

If Trump approves the safeguard measures, it will be the first such action since 2002, when the George W. Bush administration imposed an 8-30 percent duty on imported steel.

Samsung has invested US$380 million in building a washer plant in South Carolina, while LG has invested $250 million in a separate plant in Tennessee.

The two companies exported a combined $1 billion worth of large residential washing machines to the U.S. last year, holding 16 percent and 13 percent, respectively, of a market that is led by Whirlpool with 38 percent.

Samsung said no remedy is necessary in this case since washer imports will decline precipitously over the next few years with or without any import restrictions.

“The domestic industry‘s loss in market share has been driven by reduced brand consideration for the U.S. legacy brands,” Samsung said.

LG Electronics also said trade restrictions should not be imposed as most washers imported into the U.S. are being replaced by ones produced there.

“The president should not adopt any import restrictions. Should the president insist on providing an immediate benefit to Whirlpool and GE, the president should adopt a global TRQ that sets the quota level at 1.45 million units and imposes a 50 percent tariff only on any imports beyond that quota level,” LG said, referring to the tariff-rate quota. (Yonhap)