South Korea Looks To Boost American Oil & Gas Purchases To Appease Trump

South Korea is looking at a plan to purchase more US oil and gas to diversify its energy sources, and also ‘potentially head off the threat of President-elect Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs,’ Bloomberg reports.

The possible move would be aimed at reducing the trade surplus with America, as well as improving the country’s energy security, according to Thursday comments in Seoul from Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, Ahn Duk-geun. The country is also considering additional government support for companies so they can import more oil and gas from countries outside the Middle East.

“Other countries are all talking about how they need to ease the growing trade deficit under the Trump administration,” said Ahn. “We are pretty much in the same situation so we are thinking about increasing energy imports, and there’s also a need to diversify supplies to improve energy security.”

Ahn Duk-geunPhotographer: SeongJoon Cho/Bloomberg

South Korea is heavily dependent on exports to drive its economic growth – with the US being one of its top trading partners.

The move comes after Trump promised an array of protectionist policies – including universal tariffs – to try and reduce an out-of-control US trade deficit with other nations.

South Korea, the world’s third-largest buyer of liquefied natural gas, follows several other nations who are looking at boosting their purchases of US fossil fuels, including Taiwan, Vietnam and the EU.