In the first half of this year, 241 cases of import restrictions on Korean products... 11 more cases than the second half of last year

(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Jang Bo-in = Amid the spread of protectionism, import restrictions on Korean products in the first half of this year also increased compared to the second half of last year.

According to the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA)'s 'Import Regulation Trends and Forecast for the First Half of 2026' report on the 26th, as of the end of June this year, 26 countries had imposed import regulations such as anti-dumping, countervailing duties, and safeguards on Korean exports, and the total number of regulations was 241.

The number of regulation cases increased by 11 compared to the second half of last year (230 cases).

In the first half of this year, 14 existing import restrictions were terminated, but the total number of cases increased as 25 new investigations began.

India had the highest number of new investigations with 6, followed by Madagascar with 4, and Japan, the United States, the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), and South Africa with 2 each.

By product, there were 7 cases each for steel, metal, and chemicals, 3 cases for plastic and rubber, and 8 other cases were also investigated.

Looking at the total number of regulations in the first half of the year, which reflects new investigations and the end of existing measures, the most regulations were observed by country in that order: the United States (54 cases), India (28 cases), Turkiye (27 cases), Madagascar (14 cases), Canada (14 cases), and China (13 cases).

There was no change in the total number of regulations in the United States, Canada, and China compared to the second half of last year, but India and Madagascar increased by 4 each, and Turkiye increased by 1.

By type, there were 166 cases of anti-dumping, 53 cases of safeguards, 13 cases of countervailing duties, and 9 cases of bypass exports.

By item, steel and metal accounted for 46.9% with 113 cases, followed by chemicals with 37 cases (15.4%) and plastic and rubber with 35 cases (14.5%).

The report analyzed that as protectionism spreads, especially in the United States, import regulations in other countries are also expanding.

The report explained, "While each country's use of trade relief measures is strengthening due to the tariff measures imposed by the second US administration of Donald Trump, the number of new investigations into Korea's import regulations is also continuously expanding, from 10 in the first half of last year to 23 in the second half of last year and 25 in the first half of this year."

He added, “After the imposition of tariffs on steel and aluminum items in the United States, import regulation investigations on related items are continuing, and regulations are spreading in the EU and the UK, including by replacing and strengthening existing safeguards.”