South Korea hosts President Trump as trade tensions linger. Live from the UK, this is the Marketplace Morning Report from the BBC World Service. I'm William Lee Adams. Good morning.

President Trump is in South Korea for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum, or APEC, in the city of Kyeongju.

His upcoming meeting with China's leader Xi Jinping Jinping, looms large over the summit,

but Mr. Trump has already met with South Korea's president, Li Jey Myeong.

The BBC's Unuku is at APEC and can tell us more.

Youna hi.

Thanks for having me.

So negotiations between Seoul and Washington have been deadlocked for a few months now,

but President Trump has suddenly said that a deal will be finalized very soon.

What's changed?

South Koreans have been hoping to finalize the trade negotiation because it has been putting a lot of pressure on South Korea's economy.

President Trump mentioned that it will soon be finalized.

However, when I talked to the high-ranking official from the presidential office,

they were very much pessimistic that they will finally reach a deal.

And what are the sticking points in these negotiations?

So back in July, South Korea and the U.S. agreed to cut reciprocal tariffs and auto tariffs

from 25% to 15% in exchange for South Korea's $350 billion worth investment in the U.S.

But there's still some disagreements over how that money will be invested and how the profits

will be shared.

So it's a tough spot for Seoul because putting up $350 billion in cash as Trump demands

would be a huge burden considering the size of South Korean economy. And as an export-driven

economy, South Korea cannot afford to keep facing these 25% tariffs for so long.

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