"US Companies Rate Korean Business Environment Low"... How Did Hong Junpyo Respond?

AmCham Holds Korea-US Economic Cooperation Meeting with Hong Junpyo
Hong: "Regulations Must Be Eased and Labor Market Rigidity Addressed"

James Kim, Chairman and CEO of the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea (AmCham), met with Hong Junpyo, former mayor of Daegu and a preliminary presidential candidate for the People Power Party, and urged regulatory reform, stating, "American companies hope to do business in Korea, but they rate the business environment as below average." Hong responded that he would introduce a negative regulatory system to guarantee freedom for companies and also ensure the freedom to dismiss employees.

James Kim, AmCham Chairman, met with Hong on the afternoon of the 21st at the AmCham office in IFC Yeouido, Seoul, and said, "According to the results of the 2025 Business Survey conducted recently, Korea is rated as the second most preferred country in Asia for establishing regional headquarters of multinational corporations. However, 50% of responding companies rated Korea's business environment as below average." He added, "This figure has in fact doubled compared to last year."

James Kim, Chairman and CEO of the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea, and Hong Junpyo, former mayor of Daegu, met on the afternoon of the 21st at the AmCham office in IFC Yeouido, Seoul, to discuss measures for Korea-US economic cooperation. American Chamber of Commerce in Korea

Kim noted, "The current U.S. administration is focusing on building sustainable trade relations and developing Korea-U.S. industrial cooperation." He emphasized, "AmCham recently hosted the visit of Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy, who is known as a close associate of President Donald Trump, and expects that cooperation between the two countries will become even more necessary in various fields such as shipbuilding, aerospace, defense, semiconductors, and artificial intelligence (AI)."

Hong Junpyo presented the following as key initiatives: expanding energy imports from the U.S. to address the U.S. trade deficit; regulatory reform through a negative system; and guaranteeing the freedom to dismiss employees by revising the Labor Standards Act and responding to militant labor unions to expand manufacturing investment. In addition, he proposed upgrading the Korea-U.S. alliance to a nuclear alliance by packaging the 'North Korean nuclear issue' in negotiations with the Trump administration.

Hong stated, "I fully understand President Trump's position on resolving the U.S. trade deficit, but considering the unique nature of the Korea-U.S. alliance as a blood alliance, I hope that issues will not escalate into a trade dispute."

He added, "Except for areas that must never be compromised for security and national interests, I intend to freely lift regulations." He stressed, "Resolving the issue of militant labor unions and revising the Labor Standards Act to guarantee companies the freedom to dismiss employees are necessary to address the issue of non-regular workers and attract investment in manufacturing."

This meeting was organized to discuss measures for Korea-U.S. economic cooperation. From AmCham, participants included Jeffrey Jones, Chairman of the Future Partners Foundation; Oh Dongwook, CEO of Pfizer Korea; Choi Jun, Korea Representative of Bloom Energy; Sung Minseok, Senior Advisor at AlixPartners; Kim Eunha, AmCham Director of External Relations; and Lee Jaemi, Head of External Relations. On Hong's side, attendees included Kim Daesik, People Power Party lawmaker; Lee Byungtae, Head of Policy Headquarters; Lee Jongheon, Head of Policy Office; and Lee Seongbae, Spokesperson.