Trump "proposes USTR representation again" in Lighthizer for "Revision of Korea-U.S. FTA"

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has offered Robert Lighthizer, who served as head of the U.S. Trade Representative in the first Trump administration, to take the USTR leadership position again, the Financial Times reported.

The Financial Times says Lighthizer has shown interest in the secretary of the Commerce Department or Treasury, but Trump has offered a position as head of the U.S. Trade Representative.

The U.S. Trade Representative, the USTR, is a general trade policy organization that directly negotiates with foreign governments by detecting trade barriers or intellectual property violations that hinder U.S. companies from entering overseas markets.

Lighthizer, an extreme protectionist, was in charge of negotiating the revision of the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement during Trump's first term and also designed U.S. tariffs on China.

The Financial Times predicted that as Trump and Lighthizer agree on their trade policies, Lighthizer would make allies trading with the United States as well as China uneasy if he takes over as USTR representative.