South Korea passes special bill to implement its $350 billion US investment pledge

South Korea’s parliament on Thursday approved a special bill to establish a state investment corporation to manage Seoul’s planned $350 billion investment in the US.

The new corporation will specialize in the implementation of the investment package, according to South Korean media outlet Yonhap, and will be funded entirely by the government.

Passage of the legislation will mean Seoul will have the legal framework it needs to carry out its investment commitment made to Washington in exchange for more favorable “reciprocal” tariff rates.

The investment includes 150 billion dollars for shipbuilding and 200 billion dollars for projects in strategic sectors that will have a limit of 20 billion dollars per year.

The move comes after US President Donald Trump threatened in January to increase tariffs on Asia’s fourth-largest economy to 25%, up from 15% agreed in the Seoul-Washington trade deal in July 2025.

“The South Korean Legislature is not honoring its agreement with the United States,” Trump had said in a Truth Social publication.

Last month, the US Supreme Court struck down a large portion of Trump’s tariffs, prompting him to impose new 10% tariffs under Section 122.

“Although the ruling increased uncertainties surrounding exports to the US, the overall export conditions secured through the Korea-US tariff agreement will remain largely intact,” Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan was reported to have said in February.

South Korea’s parliament passed the special bill shortly after Washington’s latest trade salvo in the form of Section 301 investigations into 16 trading partners, including South Korea, which could pave the way for Trump to replace tariffs that were struck down.

Section 301 allows the United States to impose tariffs on goods imported from economies that have engaged in unfair trade practices.