The U.S. and South Korea had a "very successful" meeting on Thursday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said, as the two countries opened trade talks with Seoul seeking a path to diminish the stiff tariffs President Donald Trump is angling to impose.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was encouraged by "productive" early trade talks with Japan and South Korea this week, the Treasury said in a statement on Friday. In a readout issued a day after the bilateral meeting in Washington with Japanese Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato,

South Korea's Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok said on Sunday that last week's talks with the United States on its sweeping tariff scheme helped ease uncertainties and opened the door for orderly consultations.