Business Groups Step Up Amid Government Paralysis
"Creating an Environment Through Early Behind-the-Scenes Contacts"
Korea Economic Research Institute Urgently Dispatches Jeong Cheol
KITA and KCCI Also Begin Outreach Efforts
Earlier this month, Jeong Cheol, President of the Korea Economic Research Institute, boarded a plane to the United States alone without any entourage. With the government effectively paralyzed due to the president's impeachment proceedings, President Jeong plans to stay in the U.S. for about two months, meeting government officials, members of Congress, and opinion leaders as much as possible. A business community insider described Jeong’s visit to the U.S. as "literally like heading into uncharted territory." This is because he must meet as many people as possible and work hard on the ground, despite no guaranteed concrete outcomes while traveling alone.
According to the business community on the 14th, the Korea Economic Association urgently dispatched Jeong Cheol to the U.S. on the 8th. This was because Chairman Ryu Jin was unable to personally attend due to the upcoming board meeting and general assembly scheduled for the 20th. The business community interprets Jeong’s extended visit as a self-help measure to resolve the increased uncertainty caused by the tariff policies of the recently inaugurated ‘Trump 2nd term’ administration.
Jeong is leading the ‘Trump 2nd Term Task Force (TF)’ launched by the Korea Economic Association through an organizational restructuring on the 23rd of last month. The ‘Trump 2nd Term TF’ operates by gathering the previously scattered U.S.-related departments whenever an issue arises from the U.S. Approximately 10 members from the Global Risk Team, International Headquarters, and Economic and Industrial Headquarters participate even within the U.S. Jeong also needs to check the preparation status of the Korea-U.S. Investment Forum that the Korea Economic Association will hold locally next month. A business community insider added, "As various situations become uncertain, the main purpose of this trip is to expand connections and convey our position by meeting stakeholders directly on the ground." Plans include cooperation with local policy research institutions such as the U.S. Institute of International Economics, Korea-U.S. Economic Institute, Center for American Progress, Center for Strategic and International Studies, American Enterprise Institute, and the Heritage Foundation.
In response to the rapidly changing economic environment with the inauguration of U.S. President Donald Trump, domestic business organizations besides the Korea Economic Association are also moving swiftly. Especially, with President Trump’s ‘tariff bombardment’ starting on the 4th with an additional 10% tariff on China and continuing roughly once a week, the business community’s movements have become even more urgent.
The organizations are struggling in a situation where the government cannot perform its role due to the political vacuum. A business community insider lamented, "Ultimately, agreements or outcomes must be made in trade relations between governments, but there is no entity to take charge." He added, "If the government were not in a vacuum, a government visit to the U.S. would have been scheduled within March, and economic organizations and businesspeople would have gone together."
Each business organization plans to make various efforts to convey Korea’s position to the U.S. government, but there are significant limitations as these cannot lead to official intergovernmental discussions. He continued, "Our new government is expected to take office around May or June, so economic organizations cannot just sit idle now; they are trying to create an environment through preliminary behind-the-scenes contacts."
The Korea International Trade Association (KITA), which analyzes overseas market trends and supports Korean companies’ exports, is also planning to visit the U.S. from the 15th to the 23rd of next month with a delegation of about 10 members led by Chairman Yoon Jin-sik and executives. The heads of the U.S. headquarters, New York branch, and Dallas branch, who work at local offices, will also accompany the delegation. KITA plans to focus on the southern U.S. regions such as Arizona, Texas, and Tennessee, meeting with governors, commerce secretaries, and state legislators to exchange opinions.
A KITA official said, "While other organizations mainly visit Washington D.C., we plan to visit regions where companies have invested heavily using a ‘bottom-up’ approach." He added, "The federal government cannot ignore the opinions of the states. We plan to create public opinion that certain policies negatively affect the states, so that pro-Korean policies can be introduced." In May, KITA also plans to visit the U.S. again with companies in the form of an economic delegation. At that time, they intend to visit Washington D.C. to meet with the federal government.
The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) will also form a private economic delegation composed of CEOs from the top 20 conglomerates and visit the U.S. on the 19th and 20th. The delegation is expected to include KCCI Chairman Chey Tae-won (Chairman of SK Group) and Vice Chairman Cho Hyun-sang of HS Hyosung. KCCI is still recruiting participating companies, so the delegation size may increase. The delegation will visit Washington D.C., attend the ‘Korea-U.S. Business Night’ gala dinner on the 19th, which will be attended by about 100 members of the U.S. Congress and government officials, and hold meetings with key U.S. government figures on the 20th.
Additionally, KOTRA holds an ‘Export and Investment Emergency Response Team’ meeting every Tuesday chaired by President Kang Kyung-sung. Since the first meeting on the 14th of last month, a total of four meetings have been held, reportedly discussing many countermeasures for the ‘Trump 2nd term.’ With President Trump’s tariff announcements continuing, the next meeting on the 17th is expected to review the Trump administration’s policy trends and their impact on Korea’s exports and investments.
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