South Korea will lower tariff rates on a total of 62 import products, including 17 related to secondary battery materials, this year to bolster competitiveness of Korean industrial products and stabilize prices of key materials, sources said on Tuesday.

The number of secondary battery material imports subject to the tariff quota system are three fewer versus 20 last year, but the chunk of these imports includes cathode material, graphite, electrolyte, and separator, key components in batteries. Korean battery makers heavily rely on foreign supply of these materials to produce battery cells and modules.

Korea’s tariff quota system applies lower duty of 0 to 4 percent than the basic rate of 3 to 8 percent on industrial use-raw materials that need price stabilization amid a hike in import prices. Different items are selected every year.

The 17 secondary battery-related items are: oroborate, cobalt sulfate, adsorbent for separator manufacturing, heating furnace for cathode material manufacturing, LCO cathode material, LNCM cathode material, LNCA cathode material, electrode, graphite compound, artificial graphite, copper foil, PE separator, electrolyte, pouch, PVDF binder, acetylene black, and NCM precursor.

Of these, 14 items are usually levied an 8 percent tariff, but no tariff will be applied to them and three others under the tariff quota system from Jan. 1-Dec. 31 this year. But the import of copper foils will be limited to 7,433 tons this year.

The government also decided to maintain no or low tariff rates on 45 other products including materials and components related to hydrogen car, semiconductor, biotech, renewable, display, steel, fiber, optics, automobile, and energy.

By Kim Woo-hyun and Minu Kim

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