Minister Kim Jeong-gwan of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy held a meeting with the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea (AMCHAM) and American foreign-invested companies on January 9. The meeting was arranged at the suggestion of AMCHAM, following the signing of a memorandum of understanding on strategic investment between Korea and the U.S. last November and the introduction of a special law for strategic investment management. The meeting aimed to listen to the opinions and difficulties of American foreign-invested companies and support their investment activities in Korea.
Minister Kim expressed gratitude for the record-high investment from the U.S. to Korea last year and evaluated that the expansion of U.S. companies’ investment in Korea, amid the increase in Korean companies’ investment in the U.S. following the conclusion of the Korea-U.S. tariff negotiations, shows the mutually beneficial development of investment cooperation between the two countries. The investment from the U.S. to Korea increased from $8.7 billion in 2022 to $9.77 billion in 2025.
The meeting was attended by James Kim, Chairman of AMCHAM, and representatives of major American companies investing in Korea. The attendees expressed their opinions on the Korea-U.S. individual item tariff negotiations and foreign investment incentive systems. Minister Kim mentioned that he would strive to reflect the opinions of AMCHAM members in policies and create a more predictable and stable investment environment for foreign-invested companies.
Minister Kim emphasized the expectation for Korea and the U.S. to strengthen investment cooperation centered on advanced and future industries in the new year of 2026 and urged American foreign-invested companies to continue expanding their investment in Korea. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy plans to closely review the suggestions raised at this meeting and continue communication with major foreign-invested companies.