South Korea minister heads to US as Section 301 tariff decision looms

SEOUL, July 22 (Reuters) - South Korea's Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan will visit Washington this week for talks with senior U.S. officials on trade and investment cooperation, his ministry said, as Seoul braces for a U.S. announcement on additional tariffs under Section 301 of the Trade Act.

Kim will be in Washington from July 22 to 25 and is scheduled to meet U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to discuss strategic South Korean investment in the United States and other bilateral issues, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resource said in a statement.

Kim also plans to meet Energy Secretary Chris Wright and other U.S. officials to discuss cooperation in resources and energy, while conducting outreach with members of Congress on trade and investment matters, the ministry said.

Seoul would work to implement tariff agreements with Washington and keep bilateral trade relations stable, Kim said in the statement.

The visit comes ahead of an upcoming U.S. decision on a Section 301 investigation into trade practices linked to forced labour, which local media said could raise tariff pressure on South Korean exports.

(Reporting by Joyce Lee; Editing by Tom Hogue)