Korea Launches $350 Billion US Investment... Stocks Set to Benefit [Weekend Money]

Launch of Korea-US Strategic Investment Corporation for $350 Billion Investment

Kyobo Securities: "Positive for LNG and Nuclear Power Sentiment"

With the launch of the Korea-US Strategic Investment Corporation, which serves as the execution agency for investments in the United States, the liquefied natural gas (LNG) and nuclear power sectors have been cited as the primary beneficiaries of US-related investments.

Lee Sangho, a researcher at Kyobo Securities, recently commented in his “Remarks on the Full-Scale Launch of US Investments,” saying, “US-related investments will begin in earnest, and this will serve as a positive point for the sentiment around LNG and nuclear power industries.” US-related investment refers to the strategic investment of approximately $350 billion (about KRW 534.73 trillion) that Korea pledged to the US during last year's Korea-US tariff negotiations as a condition for mutual tariff reduction.

Researcher Lee predicted that LNG could be the primary beneficiary of the first US investment. He said, “The Louisiana LNG terminal is the leading candidate and is expected to be rapidly advanced using fund capital.” While direct orders for US investments are limited from the perspective of construction companies, there is potential for orders for equipment and materials supplied to plants. He anticipated that Hantech would benefit from this. He also added that SAMSUNG E&A could expect indirect benefits from other LNG plants in the US.

He assessed that small modular reactors (SMRs) are likely to be the primary beneficiaries of the second US investment. Compared to large-scale nuclear power plants, SMRs can progress more quickly in terms of development and funding. Considering that SMRs account for a large portion of Japan’s US investments, he forecast that the US is likely to favor the SMR direction. He pointed to Doosan Enerbility, DL E&C, and Hyundai Engineering & Construction as the biggest potential beneficiaries. He did not rule out the possibility of large-scale nuclear power plant benefits. Should this be realized, Hyundai Engineering & Construction and Doosan Enerbility would be the main beneficiaries, he said.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.