Ex-trade official tapped to lead new Korea-U.S. investment corporation

A former trade official has been tapped as the inaugural head of a new state-run company tasked with implementing Seoul's $350 billion investment pledge to the United States, the Ministry of Finance and Economy said Wednesday.

Park Jong-won, who served as deputy trade minister until October last year, was named chief of the Korea-U.S. Strategic Investment Corporation, according to the Finance Ministry.

The new company will officially set sail on Thursday, following the National Assembly's passage of the Special Act for Korea-U.S. Strategic Investment Management in March.

In October last year, Seoul and Washington reached an agreement on Korea's $350 billion investment pledge made in return for lower U.S. tariffs.

The investment will comprise $150 billion for shipbuilding cooperation and $200 billion for projects in various strategic sectors.

Under the law, the new company will operate for 20 years, with the government providing 2 trillion won in cash as its establishment fund.

The 56-year-old studied international economics at Seoul National University and started his career as a civil servant in 1996.

Yonhap