This undated file photo, provided by Hanwha Philly Shipyard, shows its Philadelphia-based shipyard. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, July 31 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s offer to help revitalize the United States’ shipbuilding industry was a key to reaching a tariff deal with the Donald Trump administration, Seoul’s trade minister said Thursday, also highlighting a “key role” U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick played in securing the last-minute deal.
“I think the proposed investment fund for shipbuilding cooperation was a real game changer,” Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo said in a press briefing, held virtually in Washington shortly after the announcement of the Korea-U.S. tariff deal. Yeo has played a leading role in South Korea’s monthslong tariff negotiations with the U.S.
“As you know, President Trump has a huge interest in the shipbuilding sector … so the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy devised a proposal on shipbuilding cooperation in close coordination with the presidential office,” added the South Korean official.
The Seoul-proposed initiative, dubbed “Make American Shipbuilding Great Again (MASGA),” includes a US$150 billion investment by South Korea in the U.S. shipbuilding industry, part of a $350 billion investment package Seoul pledged in exchange for the U.S. reducing its reciprocal tariff rate on South Korea to 15 percent from the initial 25 percent.
“We thought about what only South Korea can do and Japan and the European Union, who struck trade deals with the U.S. earlier, cannot do … and the answer was shipbuilding,” Yeo told the press briefing.
This photo, provided by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, shows Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan (L), Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo (C) and U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick during their meeting on trade issues in Washington on July 24, 2025. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
Seoul’s “massive” investment pledge includes a $200 billion fund for advanced industries, including semiconductor, battery and biopharmaceuticals, according to the Korean government.
To support the government’s efforts to strike a trade deal, Hanwha Group Vice Chairman Kim Dong-kwan visited Washington this week, along with other Korean business leaders, including Samsung Electronics Co. Chairman Lee Jae-yong and Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung.
Hanwha Group has Hanwha Ocean Co., a major shipbuilder, under its wing. Hanwha Ocean acquired Philly Shipyard in Philadelphia last year and is expected to play a key role in the U.S. shipbuilding revitalization initiative.
Yeo said loans and guarantees are expected to take up a chunk of the $350 billion investment pledge, with the Korea Trade Insurance Corp. and the Export-Import Bank of Korea playing key roles, though the details require further discussions.
The trade minister said his negotiations with Lutnick played a big role in creating momentum for last-minute tariff negotiations with the U.S., calling the U.S. commerce secretary a “deal maker.”
“I remember the moment when Lutnick reached out to us shortly after the U.S. reached a trade agreement with Japan, calling for a meeting,” said Yeo. “Our trade negotiations quickly gained speed from that point on.”
“Lutnick also gave us a lot of pointers on how we should approach Trump when we have to directly negotiate with him,” he added, noting they had held around 10 rounds of meetings in Washington, at the commerce secretary’s residence in New York and in Scotland, where Lutnick was accompanying Trump on a trip for trade negotiations with the European Union and China.
Meanwhile, Yeo called for continued efforts to bolster the “fundamental” competitiveness of Korean industries, saying Seoul may see further pressure from the U.S. administration to eliminate its non-tariff trade barriers in the era of trade protectionism, despite Thursday’s tariff deal.
(Yonhap)
