President Lee's First Economic Delegation to the US Confirmed with 15 Members... Samsung's Additional Investment Announcement in the US Under Scrutiny

[Financial News] A total of 15 members, including the heads of the four major groups, will accompany President Lee Jae-myung and US President Donald Trump to their first Korea-US summit as an economic delegation. Amidst speculations of a 'surprise investment announcement' by major companies such as Samsung Electronics, comprehensive economic dialogues are expected to take place, ranging from shipbuilding cooperation represented by the MASGA (Make American Shipbuilding Great Again) project to nuclear power plants.  
According to the business community on the 21st, the Korea-US summit to be held in Washington, USA, from the 24th to the 26th will include business leaders such as Choi Tae-won, Chairman of SK Group and the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Ryu Jin, Chairman of Poongsan and the Korea Employers Federation, Lee Jae-yong, Chairman of Samsung Electronics, and Koo Kwang-mo, Chairman of LG Group, as part of the economic delegation. Cho Won-tae, Chairman of Hanjin Group, Kim Dong-kwan, Vice Chairman of Hanwha Group, Park Ji-won, Chairman of Doosan Enerbility, and Seo Jeong-jin, Chairman of Celltrion Group, will also accompany them. They also attended the economic group and business leaders' meeting for the Korea-Japan tour held at the presidential office in Yongsan, Seoul, on the 19th. Hyundai Motor Group, which sent Vice Chairman Jang Jae-hoon due to scheduling conflicts, is expected to join the delegation directly from overseas. Additionally, CJ Group Chairman Lee Jae-hyun has decided to join, and although Lotte Group is also accompanying, it is not confirmed whether Chairman Shin Dong-bin will attend in person. Huh Tae-soo, Chairman of GS Group, and Jung Ki-sun, Senior Vice Chairman of HD Hyundai, as well as Choi Yoon-beom, Chairman of Korea Zinc, and Choi Soo-yeon, CEO of Naver, are also named in the delegation. All are leading companies in Korea's key industries and are representative investors in the US.
Lee Jae-yong, Chairman of Samsung Electronics, who visited the US last month to support the Korea-US tariff negotiations, is likely to announce plans for expanding the Taylor plant in Texas and establishing a third semiconductor plant in the US during this Korea-US summit. Samsung Electronics has recently secured large orders from Tesla and Apple through its Taylor and Austin semiconductor plants in the US.
SK Group, led by Chairman Choi Tae-won, is preparing to build a semiconductor post-processing plant for next-generation HBM production in West Lafayette, Indiana, through its key affiliate SK Hynix. Chairman Chung Eui-sun announced plans in March to invest a total of $21 billion (29 trillion won) in the US automotive, parts and logistics, steel, and future industries by 2028. LG Group, led by Chairman Koo Kwang-mo, is building standalone plants in Lansing, Michigan, and Arizona, in addition to existing production facilities, and joint plants with Hyundai Motor and Honda in Georgia and Ohio, respectively.
In particular, Vice Chairman Kim Dong-kwan and Senior Vice Chairman Jung Ki-sun are the 'key men' of this US visit. They are the protagonists of the 'MASGA project,' which played a decisive role in the recent Korea-US trade negotiations. Chairman Cho Won-tae is strengthening aerospace cooperation as Korean Air signed a 48 trillion won contract with Boeing for aircraft and engine procurement. Chairman Park Ji-won is discussing Korea-US cooperation related to Doosan Enerbility's small modular reactors (SMR), and Chairman Seo Jeong-jin is expected to announce follow-up measures for the acquisition of a local bio-company's production plant. 
ehcho@fnnews.com Eunhyo Cho, Reporter