South Korea says negotiations with the United States over its investment package are close to a final agreement, with both sides aiming to finish the remaining work and announce the result this week. Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan made the comments after returning from New York, where he held three days of talks including meetings with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
Kim said the headline limits from the earlier agreement remain intact: the total Korean investment commitment is capped at $200 billion, with an annual ceiling of $20 billion. He said those figures were mutually agreed and should not be exceeded. That matters because the size and pacing of the commitment determine how much capital Korean companies and public institutions may need to mobilize over time.
The headline limits are settled, the final terms are not
The deal is not finished yet. Kim said many issues were close to agreement but declined to describe unresolved details before a final settlement. Additional talks are expected by video conference early this week, and the government says it will disclose the terms once negotiations are complete.
For Korean businesses, the important question is what sits beneath the headline cap. The final text will determine which projects qualify, how financing is structured, how risks are shared and how directly the package translates into opportunities for Korean companies in the United States. Those details can matter as much as the top-line number.
The next checkpoint is straightforward: whether the promised announcement arrives this week and whether the published terms match the limits Seoul says are already settled. Until then, the government is signaling substantial progress, not a completed agreement.