1. Deputy Director-General for Bilateral Economic Affairs Kim Hee-sang of the Foreign Ministry (head of the Import Restriction Response Team) met with Deputy Director-General of the Department of Foreign Trade (DFT) of Thailand Wanchai Varavithya in Bangkok on September 21, and urged the Thai government to operate its anti-dumping system in a way that conforms to WTO agreements.

o He also pointed out that the Thai government’s excessive import restrictions on steel products from the ROK are having a negative impact on economic cooperation between the two countries, including the ROK’s investment in Thailand. He asked for a more prudent approach.

2. With protectionist measures on steel increasing amid a global oversupply of steel, Thailand, the world’s fifth-largest steel importer, classified steel products as sensitive products, and has been strengthening efforts to protect the country’s steel industry by increasing monitoring and restrictions on steel imports, including constant monitoring on import prices.

o The Thai government is imposing the strongest import restrictions on products from the ROK among ASEAN countries. There are nine types of import restrictions, all of which are on steel products.

3. In February last year, the Foreign Ministry sent the Import Restriction Response Team to Thailand, and explained the ROK’s position to the country’s DFT. As a result of such an active response, the Thai government decided on August 1 this year not to impose anti-dumping measures against flat hot rolled steel pickled and oiled from the ROK.

o In an effort to respond to protectionist trends around the world, the Foreign Ministry has created and operated teams handling import restrictions at 14 major diplomatic missions overseas, including the Embassy in Thailand, since August 2016. The Foreign Ministry, in close cooperation with business circles and overseas diplomatic missions, will continue to actively respond to foreign countries’ import restrictions on products from the ROK.


* unofficial translation