US trade investigation puts South Korea’s state-backed growth strategy at risk



Analysis US trade investigation puts South Korea’s state-backed growth strategy at risk Section 301 probe could bring Korean technology sectors and industrial subsidies under Washington’s scrutiny John LeeMarch 12, 2026 SHARE COPY LINK FACEBOOK X LINKEDIN MASTODON South Korea's delegation led by Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol meets with U.S. President Donald Trump and his senior advisers in the White House, Aug. 2, 2025 \| Image: Scott Bessent via Twitter South Korea’s industrial policy framework is entering a new phase of scrutiny after the United States Trade Representative (USTR) opened a Section 301 investigation that could expose Seoul’s state-led growth strategy and corporate regulatory disputes to expanded American trade enforcement. The investigation places South Korea among a group of advanced manufacturing economies whose policies Washington believes may contribute to “structural excess capacity” and distort global markets. Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 gives the U.S. government broad authority to examine foreign economic practices that burden American commerce and to impose retaliatory measures if negotiations fail. For Seoul, the © Korea Risk Group. All rights reserved. No part of this content may be reproduced, distributed, or used for commercial purposes without prior written permission from Korea Risk Group. LATEST ANALYSIS 01Lee Jae Myung’s ‘pacemaker’ strategy tests South Korea’s leverage with Trump 02Trump’s Korea investment victory lap masks safeguards Seoul still controls 03North Korean POW dispute tests Seoul-Kyiv trust and future Ukraine policy 04South Korea’s CPTPP push exposes the cost of turning trade gains into consensus 05AI storage boom gives South Korea battery makers an EV overcapacity lifeline 06South Korea’s Mexico strategy runs into the hard limits of USMCA politics 07Preschool test ban forces South Korea’s English hagwons to rethink placement 08Lee Jae Myung’s Wall Street pitch tests South Korea’s capital market credibility

Analysis

US trade investigation puts South Korea’s state-backed growth strategy at risk

Section 301 probe could bring Korean technology sectors and industrial subsidies under Washington’s scrutiny

John LeeMarch 12, 2026

US trade investigation puts South Korea’s state-backed growth strategy at risk

South Korea's delegation led by Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol meets with U.S. President Donald Trump and his senior advisers in the White House, Aug. 2, 2025 | Image: Scott Bessent via Twitter

South Korea’s industrial policy framework is entering a new phase of scrutiny after the United States Trade Representative (USTR) opened a Section 301 investigation that could expose Seoul’s state-led growth strategy and corporate regulatory disputes to expanded American trade enforcement.

The investigation places South Korea among a group of advanced manufacturing economies whose policies Washington believes may contribute to “structural excess capacity” and distort global markets.

Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 gives the U.S. government broad authority to examine foreign economic practices that burden American commerce and to impose retaliatory measures if negotiations fail.

For Seoul, the

US trade investigation puts South Korea’s state-backed growth strategy at risk

LATEST ANALYSIS

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John Lee