new york
CNN
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South Korea-based President Hyundai and President Donald Trump announced a $20 billion investment in US US investments on Monday, including Louisiana’s $5 billion steel factories at the White House.
The $5.8 billion Louisiana facility will become the first steel manufacturing facility for an automaker in the United States, producing more than 2.7 million tonnes of steel per year and creating more than 1,400 jobs. In his remarks at the White House, Trump said he would supply steel to automotive factories in Alabama and Georgia.
This afternoon’s announcement at the White House included Trump, Hyundai Chairman Yuisun Chong and Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry.
Chung said this is the company’s biggest US investment.
“Investing in the pockets of hardworking Americans, more jobs, more money – all thanks to President Trump’s economic policies,” White House press director Karoline Leavitt wrote on social media.
CNBC first reported the announcement. Hyundai did not immediately respond to CNN’s request for comment.
“This investment is a clear demonstration that tariffs work very strongly,” Trump said Monday afternoon.
Chong said the decision to open a factory in the Savannah area of Georgia was “started during a meeting with President Trump in Seoul in 2019.” The project “aligns with the beginning of President Trump’s second term and makes this moment even more special.”
Trade Publications reported in early January that Hyundai was considering a US steel factory ahead of Trump’s second term, cutting his own production costs and mandating it for protectionist economic policies.
Trump has already set a 25% tariff on steel and aluminum imports, and the collection of Asian and European vehicles will come into effect next month. The goal is to build more cars in the US. But it’s not that simple.
Stellantis, which manufactures North American cars under the Jeep, Ram, Dodge and Chrysler brands, has agreed to reopen its Illinois shutter plants as part of a deal to close the 2023 strike by United auto workers.
It pointed out that soon after Trump took office, it would resume plans to reopen again in January, ensuring that it would increase American car production. However, the plant will not resume until 2027.
And despite Trump’s argument that his tariff threat is necessary to “save” the US auto industry, US factories already produce a large portion of North American automobile production.
Data from S&P Global Mobility shows that 4 million people in Mexico and 1.3 million in Canada last year 10.2 million cars were built at US assembly plants. The American factories have around 1 million workers who produce cars, trucks and auto parts.
Hyundai’s announcement comes before April 2, when even more drastic tariffs could be enacted, targeting countries with large trade surpluses like South Korea. Trump is encouraging investment in American manufacturing, with similar announcements being made by Taiwanese semiconductor manufacturers and Japan’s SoftBank.
Last month, Apple said it would invest $500 billion in expanding facilities, manufacturing and projects across the nation over the next four years. The announcement appears to be aimed at helping the company avoid new tariffs on goods imported from China, but some of the investment efforts may already be ongoing.
Oracle, Openai and Softbank announced in January that they would set up a new company called Stargate to grow artificial intelligence infrastructure in the United States. Together, the company plans to invest $500 billion in the project over the next few years.
New Presidents and presidential elections often hold joint announcements with businesses about large US investments to promote American manufacturing. But their track record of success is mixed.
Trump and Foxconn announced Wisconsin’s $10 billion electronics factory in 2017. However, the company ultimately abandoned most of the facilities and plans for the high-tech products it was supposed to build. The company said in 2021 it would invest just $672 million in revised contracts that would create less than 1,500 jobs.
