Hyundai Motor Group has decided to prepare the entire mobility supply chain in the U.S., including a steel mill that will produce steel plates for vehicles as well as a new factory for finished vehicles. The investment announcement came about a week before U.S. President Donald Trump's mutual tariff announcement. Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Eui-sun met with President Trump at the White House in Washington, D.C. on the 24th (local time) and announced the investment package. The completion of the project is in 2028, before the end of President Trump's term. Hyundai Motor Group will invest $8.6 billion (about 13 trillion won) in the automobile sector, $6.1 billion (about 9 trillion won) in parts, logistics, and steel, and $6.3 billion (about 9 trillion won) in future industries and energy, respectively, over the next four years. In the automobile sector, the annual production capacity of the new plant "Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America (HMGMA)," which is being tested in Georgia, will be increased from 300,000 to 500,000 units.
In the steel sector, Hyundai Steel will build an electric steel mill in Louisiana. In the new business sector, it expands cooperation with U.S. companies, including Nvidia and Waymo, and invests in U.S. local startups with potential.
Chairman Chung, who took the podium ahead of the event, told President Trump, "Congratulations on an amazing start to the new term," adding, "The key to this commitment is to strengthen supply chains in the United States, from steel and components to automobiles." This is the first time that the head of a South Korean conglomerate has announced plans to invest in the U.S. with President Trump.
"This investment is a clear example of how tariffs work very strongly," Trump said. "Hyundai Motor Group will produce steel in the United States and make cars in the United States. In the end, there is no need to pay tariffs (if it is produced in the United States)," he stressed. President Trump said to Chairman Chung, "It is a great honor to be with Hyundai, a truly great company," adding, "If you have any problems getting the permission you want, come to me."
Chairman Chung invited, "I recommend you to visit one of the state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in person to confirm our commitment to the United States and American workers," and President Trump responded, "Okay." Hyundai Motor Group Vice Chairman Jang Jae-hoon and Hyundai Steel President Seo Kang-hyun joined the presentation.
[Reporter Park Jewan]
