The US government has confirmed that the country's existing free trade agreement (FTA) with South Korea is set to be reviewed and reformed.

During an American Chamber of Commerce meeting in Seoul, US vice-president Mike Pence said the five-year-old deal will be reexamined due to president Donald Trump's concerns that too many barriers continue to exist for US businesses in the country.

President Trump has pledged on numerous occasions to narrow big trade deficits with countries in Asia, with Mr Pence noting that the US trade deficit with South Korea has more than doubled in the five years since the FTA came into effect.

The vice-president said: "We have to be honest about where our trade relationship is falling short."

Increased scrutiny on the US-South Korea pact - also known as KORUS - since President Trump took office recently led the Korea International Trade Association to present research showing that the deal has delivered economic gains for the US and South Korea alike.

The share of South Korean goods exported to the US stood at 2.57 per cent in 2011, rising to 3.19 per cent by the end of 2016, while the corresponding figure for US products sold to the Korean market jumped from 8.5 per cent to 10.64 per cent over the same period.