This is not the best news for the Korean startup scene. Korean conglomerates invest in the US Market to expand their global positioning. Conglomerates like Samsung, SK, Lotte, LG, and others have started building plants in the United States and investing in US companies. This plan is to expand into the world’s biggest customer market. The movement began when Donald Trump got elected in 2020. Trump wanted to bring more international companies into the US to create jobs.
Moreover, this was especially important because of COVID-19 and its impact on unemployment in the United States. Many Korean conglomerates have already started building plants in the US from 2019-2020. Many of these projects started before the COVID-19 outbreak. Now in 2023, this trend continues to grow under Joe Biden.
Korean Conglomerates Invest in the US Market
Lotte
In 2021, Lotte Chemical Group completed a $3 billion plant in Louisiana, becoming the first Korean chemical firm in the US. This move got Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin to meet with then-US president Trump. This was the first Korean Chaebol to meet with a US President. Trump even tweeted a photo of himself with the Chairman.
This plant in Louisiana will create thousands of jobs in the city. For Lotte, this move expands its brand into the US market and will allow Lotte to expand other ventures so they can also enter the United States.
Lotte Chemical USA and Eagle US 2 have formed the LACC, a joint venture dedicated to a petrochemical project in Louisiana. LACC has been funning ethane crackers since early 2019. The facility can produce around 1 million tons of ethylene per year.
Moreover, Lotte Biologics Co. will be looking to invest in the US Bio industry in 2023. They aim to turn the plant in Syracuse into the best ADC-specialized contract production service center in North America. They plan to start construction by the second half of 2025.
SK
John
John is the Co-Founder of Seoulz. He has covered the Korean startup & tech scene for over eight years and has written over 700 articles regarding the Korean startup ecosystem. He has brought global attention to Korea's tech scene using Google SEO. Email him at john@seoulz.com