Minister of Trade, Industry and Resources Kim Jung-kwan talks to reporters at Dulles International Airport in Virginia on May 6. [YONHAP]
It will take at least another month for Korea to unveil the details of its investment plan in the United States — pledged under the two countries’ trade deal from last November — after related laws take effect on June 18, according to Trade Minister Kim Jung-kwan.
“Any concrete project would have to be discussed only after the new law tied to U.S. investment takes effect,” the trade minister said to reporters at Dulles International Airport near Washington on Wednesday, responding to a question about when the first investment announcement would come under the Korea-U.S. trade agreement.
The special law on strategic investment management between Korea and the United States passed the National Assembly on March 12 and is scheduled to take effect on June 18.
Kim also addressed speculation that a liquefied natural gas export terminal project in Louisiana could become the first deal.
“The Louisiana project is one of the options under review,” he said. “But [we are] not yet at a stage in which I can say that it will be the first.”
“I do not believe that the investment plans are getting delayed, but we did start later than Japan,” Kim told reporters when asked whether Korea was moving too slowly compared to Japan, which also made a trade deal with the United States last year.
“Specific projects are not something that just happen. [...] They have to be implemented in concrete terms,” he said. “I am not even sure that it’s fair to say Korea is behind Japan.”
Kim also commented on the Section 301 investigations that the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) has launched against economies, including Korea and Japan.
“We understood that its purpose is to restore the 15 percent reciprocal tariff,” he said.
Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Kim Jung-kwan meets with Canadian Industry Minister Melanie Joly in Ottawa on May 5. [MINISTRY OF TRADE, INDUSTRY AND RESOURCES]
The USTR announced in March that it had initiated Section 301 investigations into what it called structural excess capacity and production in manufacturing sectors.
“We will do our best to make sure that [tariffs] stay within that range,” Kim said, referring to the 15 percent level. “There could be chances to talk about the issue [during the trip to Washington].”
A Korean government official had already attended a public hearing on the matter and delivered Seoul’s position the previous day.
Before arriving in Washington, Kim visited Ottawa and met Canada’s Industry Minister Mélanie Joly and Energy and Natural Resources Minister Tim Hodgson to request Canadian interest and support in Korea’s bid for Canada’s submarine procurement project.
Kim is expected to hold preliminary talks on strategic investment with senior Donald Trump administration officials, including Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and meet congressional figures on U.S. investment and broader trade issues.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
댓글
0