South Korea’s major conglomerates, Samsung Electronics, Hyundai Motor Group and Hanwha Group, made sizable donations to US President Donald Trump’s inaugural festivities, in a move widely seen as an effort to bolster ties with the administration amid trade uncertainties.
Data disclosed Sunday by the US Federal Election Commission showed Hyundai Motor and Hanwha donated $1 million each to Trump’s inaugural committee, which is in charge of organizing and funding the balls, galas and many other inauguration events.
Meanwhile, Samsung Electronics, through its US subsidiary Samsung Electronics America, gave $315,000 worth of in-kind goods, though the filing did not specify the items.
The funds were given ahead of the inauguration ceremony on Jan. 20. Hyundai donated through its local subsidiary Hyundai Motor America on Jan. 6, while Hanwha gave via its two US affiliates, Hanwha Defense USA and Hanwha Q Cells America, each providing $500,000 on Dec. 11 and Jan. 6, respectively.
The latest donations mark a sharp increase from Trump’s first inauguration in 2017, when Samsung was the only Korean company to contribute, offering $100,000.
Notably, none of the three chaebol groups donated to former President Joe Biden’s inauguration in 2021.
Under US law, foreign individuals or corporations are barred from donating directly to inaugural committees, but their US subsidiaries can.
In total, the second Trump inauguration committee raised a record-breaking sum of $239 million, topping the previous record of $107 million Trump raised for his first swearing-in ceremony eight years ago and outpacing his predecessor Joe Biden's $61 million. About 140 different entities contributed at least $1 million each, with major representation in the tech sector including Amazon, Nvidia, Google and OpenAI.
South Korean companies have been ramping up their Washington lobbying recently, spending big bucks each year and hiring officials with strong ties with the Trump administration to lead their government relations in the critical US market.
The lobbying push comes as Trump has been upping the ante on tariffs, including imposing duties on sectors such as steel, aluminum and automobiles, all of which are key export industries for South Korea. The sweeping measures, along with separate “reciprocal” tariffs that are currently on pause, are adding pressure to Korea's export-driven economy.
sahn@heraldcorp.com
