On Saturday, May 21, U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina M. Raimondo hosted a roundtable with, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Lee Chang-Yang and U.S. and Korean executives to demonstrate the importance of the trade and investment relationship between the United States and Korea, and in particular, significant cross-border investments in sectors critical to the long-term growth of both economies.

Companies from Korea in attendance included Hanwha Solutions, Hyundai Motor Group, LG Corps., Lotte Group, Naver, OCI, Samsung, and SK Group. U.S. companies in attendance included Applied Materials, Bloom Energy, GM Korea, Google, Lam Research, Qualcomm, Corning, and GE.

Following the roundtable, Secretary Raimondo released the following statement:

I am honored to co-host this business roundtable with Minister of Trade, Industry, and Energy Lee Chang-Yang. The United States and the Republic of Korea recognize that the cooperation on semiconductors, electric vehicles and batteries for electric vehicles, fuel cell and solar technology, and the digital economy will continue to transform our societies and drive our shared economic prosperity. 

These U.S. and Korean companies are at the forefront of global technology, and together, their historic investments have helped create good-paying jobs in both countries.

The United States and Korea are significant trade and investment partners. Korea is our 6th largest trading partner.  Korean firms have invested over $62 billion in the United States, and the United States has been Korea’s second-largest source of foreign direct investment for over a decade. 

To deepen our collaboration, the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy (MOTIE) and the U.S. Department of Commerce have signed a memorandum of understanding to establish the U.S. – Korea Supply Chain and Commercial Dialogue between the U.S. Department of Commerce and the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy.

We believe that the work between MOTIE and Commerce under this MOU will foster increased collaboration and strengthen the international competitiveness of U.S. and Korean industry.

We appreciate Korea’s support of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework and look forward to collaborating closely in its development.