Samsung and other South Korean firms pledge larger domestic investments
after US tariff deal
[November 17, 2025] By
KIM TONG-HYUNG
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Samsung Electronics and other major South
Korean companies on Sunday announced fresh domestic investment plans at
a meeting with President Lee Jae Myung, who hopes the moves will counter
concerns that the firms would prioritize U.S. investments under a trade
deal.
Lee’s meeting with business leaders came days after his government
finalized a trade deal with the United States, in which Seoul pledged to
invest $350 billion in U.S. industries in exchange for averting the
Trump administration’s highest tariffs.
Samsung, a global leader in computer chips, said it will invest 450
trillion won ($310 billion) over the next five years to expand its
domestic operations, including building another production line at its
Pyeongtaek manufacturing hub to meet surging global semiconductor
demands fueled by artificial intelligence.
Samsung said the new line, set to begin operations in 2028, is part of
its broader effort to secure additional production capacity in
anticipation of rising mid- to long-term demands for memory chips. The
company also plans to build AI data centers in the country’s southwest
South Jeolla Province and the southeastern city of Gumi to support
government efforts to reduce the development gap between the greater
Seoul metropolitan area and other regions.
Hyundai Motor Group, South Korea’s largest automaker, said it plans to
invest 125 trillion won ($86.3 billion) from 2026 to 2030 to expand
domestic research and development and advance new technologies such as
AI, robotics and self-driving cars.
SK Group, another semiconductor powerhouse, and shipbuilders Hanwha
Ocean and HD Hyundai also announced plans to increase their domestic
investments. Both are central to South Korean commitments to boost the
U.S. shipbuilding industry, a sector highlighted by President Donald
Trump in negotiations with Seoul.
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South Korean President Lee Jae Myung speaks at the National Assembly
in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. (Chung Sung-Jun/Pool
Photo via AP)
 In his meeting with the companies’
chiefs, Lee credited the business sector for helping his government
negotiate the trade deal with Washington but urged the companies to
maintain strong domestic investments to ease concerns they might cut
spending at home to invest more in America. He said his government
is exploring various policy steps, including easing regulations, to
help create a more favorable business environment for the companies.
SK Chair Chey Tae-won, whose group plans to invest at least 128
trillion won ($88.3 billion) domestically through 2028 with a focus
on AI, said the finalization of trade talks with the United States
eases uncertainties and paves way for bolder domestic investment.
The two governments on Friday released the details of the trade
agreement, including $150 billion in South Korean investments in the
U.S. shipbuilding sector and an additional $200 billion in other
American industries, which Seoul says will be capped at $20 billion
per year to prevent financial instability.
The United States agreed to reduce tariffs on South Korean cars and
auto parts from 25% to 15%, and to apply tariffs on South Korean
semiconductors on terms “no less favorable” than those granted to
comparable competitors in the future.
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