China, Japan, South Korea to jointly counter US tariffs, Chinese media reports

China, Japan, and South Korea have agreed to jointly respond to the US tariffs, according to a post shared on a social media account linked to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV on Monday.

This agreement was finalised on Sunday after three nations held their first economic discussions in five years. The talks focused on how to enhance regional trade as three Asian export powers prepare for additional tariffs from the US, which President Donald Trump is likely to announce in the coming days.

The tariffs are part of the wider trade tensions involving the US and its trading partners: China, Japan, and South Korea.

In the meeting, it was noted that Japan and South Korea will import semiconductor raw materials from China, while China wants to procure chip products from Japan and South Korea.

In a post by the account Yuyuan Tantian, the three nations have agreed to step up cooperation on supply chains and continue negotiations on export controls in order to ensure smooth trade relations amid the pressures from US tariff actions.

Potential free trade agreement

China, Japan, and South Korea's trade ministers also discussed ideas on how to enhance "regional and global trade" through a potential free trade agreement.

They decided to "closely cooperate" on a free trade deal between South Korea, Japan, and China, which will enhance the trade relationship between the three countries.

These attempts at building alliances come just before US President Donald Trump is set to announce additional tariffs, which he has called part of his "liberation day" strategy to transform Washington's trade policies.