As the U.S. Trump administration<\/strong> has officially announced plans to impose a 25% \u201cReciprocal Tariff\u201d<\/strong> on Korea starting Friday, August 1<\/strong>, under the pretext of reducing the U.S. trade deficit, Korea\u2019s mold exports are expected to face even greater difficulties amid an already sharp decline in overseas shipments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The reciprocal tariff will be applied separately from product-specific tariffs<\/strong> imposed under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act<\/strong>, such as those on automobiles and steel. The policy aims to address perceived tariff imbalances between countries by imposing equivalent retaliatory tariffs<\/strong> on selected trading partners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The United States is one of the key export destinations<\/strong> for Korea\u2019s mold industry. As a result of this measure, the industry is expected to suffer from weakened price competitiveness<\/strong> and a substantial decline in export volumes<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Industry concerns have intensified further following the increase in product-specific tariffs on automobiles and steel to 50% in June<\/strong>, as molds may potentially be classified as derivative products<\/strong> subject to additional tariff burdens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to an analysis conducted by our Association based on HS Codes<\/strong>, the impact of strengthened U.S. protectionist policies has already become evident in export figures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cumulative mold exports to the United States through May this year<\/strong> totaled USD 72.61 million<\/strong>, representing a sharp decline to 59% of the level recorded during the same period last year<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In particular, press molds<\/strong>, which recorded exports of USD 105.72 million<\/strong> during the same period last year, fell dramatically to USD 27.01 million<\/strong>, marking a 74% year-on-year decrease<\/strong>. Meanwhile, despite a nearly 50% decrease in exports to the United States as of May<\/strong>, China<\/strong> has expanded exports to Europe and Southeast Asia<\/strong>, resulting in an overall 5% increase in total exports<\/strong>. This trend is viewed not as simple transshipment but as a structural strategic shift driven by aggressive low-price competition<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Korea\u2019s mold industry is already facing mounting difficulties due to the growing penetration of low-priced Chinese molds<\/strong>, and the further intensification of China\u2019s pricing strategy is expected to increase pressure across the entire industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The mold industry is currently facing a dual crisis<\/strong>, driven by sluggish demand in downstream industries and intensified low-price competition from China, affecting both the domestic market and exports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In particular, once the reciprocal tariff is fully implemented in addition to existing product-specific tariffs, exports to the United States are expected to contract further, dealing a significant blow to Korean mold manufacturers with high dependence on the U.S. market<\/strong>. Given the industry\u2019s long lead times from contract signing to shipment, there is also a high likelihood that additional tariffs may apply to contracts concluded prior to the tariff implementation date<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Recognizing the seriousness of the current situation, our Association plans to pursue export support measures, R&D initiatives, and other strategic responses<\/strong>. At the industry level, now is a critical time for companies to focus on developing new technologies, strengthening cooperation among partners, and reducing costs<\/strong> to enhance overall competitiveness.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Korean Mold Exports Face Growing Challenges As the U.S. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":1140,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_wpcom_ai_launchpad_first_post":false,"_jetpack_hide_featured_image":false,"_jetpack_featured_image_duplicate_dismissed":0,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[2,21],"tags":[56],"class_list":["post-1138","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-fadma-news","tag-kodmicrepublic-of-korea"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/fadma.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/2025071601.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fadma.org\/zh-hant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1138","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fadma.org\/zh-hant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fadma.org\/zh-hant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fadma.org\/zh-hant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fadma.org\/zh-hant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1138"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/fadma.org\/zh-hant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1138\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fadma.org\/zh-hant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1140"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fadma.org\/zh-hant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1138"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fadma.org\/zh-hant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1138"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fadma.org\/zh-hant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1138"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n\n\n\nImpact of U.S. Protectionist Measures Becomes Visible<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Sharp Decline in Mold Exports to the United States<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Exports of plastic molds<\/strong> declined by 35% year-on-year<\/strong> to USD 36.72 million<\/strong>, while die-casting molds<\/strong> plunged by 88% year-on-year<\/strong> to just USD 1.06 million<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nDual Pressure from Weak Domestic Demand and Export Decline<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Urgent Need for Industry-Wide Countermeasures<\/h3>\n\n\n\n