South Korea shipbuilders catch rising tide of US Navy business
NAMI MATSUURA
SEOUL -- South Korea's shipbuilders are wining U.S. deals with government encouragement, aiming to chip away at China's global dominance by leveraging the alliance between Washington and Seoul as well as the Trump administration's push to revive the American industry.
HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, South Korea's largest shipbuilder, last month announced a partnership with a company in the U.S.-based Edison Chouest Offshore group. The companies plan to build container ships that can run partly on liquefied natural gas, hoping to begin deliveries by 2028.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Japan Today
2 hours ago
- Japan Today
Japan seeks 8th round of tariff talks next week in U.S.
The Japanese government wants to send its chief tariff negotiator to the United States for an eighth round of ministerial-level talks early next week, a source close to the matter said Thursday. Tokyo is believed to have sounded out the administration of President Donald Trump for another round of negotiations ahead of next Wednesday's deadline for its 90-day pause on country-specific tariffs. With Trump appearing to harden his stance, Japan's last-ditch efforts will hinge on whether Ryosei Akazawa can secure a deal that includes a reduced tariff rate on cars, the source said. In rounds of talks since April, Washington has been reluctant to accept Tokyo's request to withdraw or reduce the additional 25 percent tariff on cars. Amid the stalemate, the Japanese side is seeking an extension of the tariff suspension deadline to allow talks to continue. Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Thursday expressed confidence that tariff negotiations with the United States are making steady progress. "We need to cover a wide range of areas, including nontariff barriers. But we are steadily and certainly making progress on each of them," Ishiba told a program on public broadcaster NHK. "Japan is the largest investor in the United States and the biggest contributor in terms of creating jobs. Our hope is that this will be taken into consideration," he said, underscoring the need for Washington to focus on investment rather than tariffs. His remarks came as Trump on Tuesday floated the idea of raising tariffs on imports from Japan to as high as 30 percent or 35 percent, while complaining about Japan's purchases of American rice and cars. "I'm not sure we're going to make a deal. I doubt it," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, calling Japan "very tough" and "very spoiled." The dispute over auto tariffs has been a key obstacle to a deal, with Washington pressuring its Asian security ally to increase imports of American goods, including cars, rice and oil, to help reduce its large trade deficit. In return, Japan has highlighted its contributions to the U.S. economy and proposed a package deal that includes increased investment in the United States and cooperation on economic security, the source said. Without an extension to the 90-day pause on part of the so-called reciprocal tariffs, Japan will face an additional 14 percent country-specific tariff on top of the 10 percent baseline duty the United States has imposed on imports from all countries. The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this week that the U.S. side warned Japanese officials during talks in late May that it might demand a cap on the number of vehicles Japan could export to the United States -- a policy known as a voluntary export restriction, citing people familiar with the matter. But Japanese officials held firm, telling their U.S. negotiating partners they would not accept any deal that preserves Trump's 25 percent automotive tariff, resulting in a deadlock in the negotiations, the U.S. newspaper said. © KYODO
Japan Today
2 hours ago
- Japan Today
Trump wins major victory as Congress passes flagship bill
By Ben SHEPPARD and Frankie TAGGART U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday secured a major political victory when Congress narrowly passed his signature tax and spending bill, cementing his radical second-term agenda and boosting funds for his anti-immigration drive. The bill underlined the president's dominance over the Republican Party, which had been wracked by misgivings over a text that will balloon the national debt and gut health and welfare support. A small group of opponents in the party finally fell into line after Speaker Mike Johnson worked through the night to corral dissenters in the House of Representatives behind the "One Big Beautiful Bill." The bill squeezed past a final vote, 218-214. The White House declared "VICTORY" on social media and said Trump would sign the bill into law on Friday, the July 4th Independence Day holiday. "One of the most consequential Bills ever. The USA is the 'HOTTEST' Country in the World, by far!!!" the president posted as he scented success. The timing of the vote had slipped back through Thursday as Democratic House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries spoke against the bill for nearly nine hours to delay proceedings. Mass deportations, tax breaks The legislation is the latest in a series of big wins for Trump, including a Supreme Court ruling last week that curbed lone federal judges from blocking his policies, and U.S. air strikes that led to a ceasefire between Israel and Iran. His sprawling mega-bill narrowly passed the Senate on Tuesday and had to return to the lower chamber for a rubber stamp of the senators' revisions. The package honors many of Trump's campaign promises: boosting military spending, funding a mass migrant deportation drive and committing $4.5 trillion to extend his first-term tax relief. "Everything was an absolute disaster under the Biden-Harris radical regime, and we took the best effort that we could, in one big, beautiful bill to fix as much of it as we could," Johnson said. "And I am so grateful that we got that done." But it is expected to pile an extra $3.4 trillion over a decade onto the country's fast-growing deficits, while shrinking the federal food assistance program and forcing through the largest cuts to the Medicaid health insurance scheme for low-income Americans since its 1960s launch. Some estimates put the total number of recipients set to lose their insurance coverage under the bill at 17 million. Scores of rural hospitals are expected to close. While Republican moderates in the House fear the cuts will damage their prospects of reelection next year, fiscal hawks chafed over savings that they say fall far short of what was promised. Johnson had to negotiate tight margins, and could only lose a handful of lawmakers in the final vote, among more than two dozen who had earlier declared themselves open to rejecting Trump's 869-page text. Trump has spent weeks hitting the phones and hosting White House meetings to cajole lawmakers torn between angering welfare recipients at home and incurring the president's wrath. Democrats hope public opposition to the bill will help them flip the House in the 2026 midterm election, pointing to data showing that it represents a huge redistribution of wealth from the poorest Americans to the richest. Jeffries held the floor for his Democrats ahead of the final vote, as he told stories of everyday Americans who he argued would be harmed by Trump's legislation. "This bill, this one big, ugly bill -- this reckless Republican budget, this disgusting abomination -- is not about improving the quality of life of the American people," he said. After the bill was passed, Trump predecessor's Joe Biden said it was "not only reckless -- it's cruel." Extra spending on the military and border security will be paid in part through ending clean energy and electric vehicle subsidies -- a factor triggering a bitter public feud between Trump and former key advisor Elon Musk. © 2025 AFP
Nikkei Asia
7 hours ago
- Nikkei Asia
South Korea shipbuilders catch rising tide of US Navy business
Hanwha Ocean executives and U.S. Navy officials observe maintenance on the USNS Wally Schirra in October. (Hanhwa Ocean) NAMI MATSUURA SEOUL -- South Korea's shipbuilders are wining U.S. deals with government encouragement, aiming to chip away at China's global dominance by leveraging the alliance between Washington and Seoul as well as the Trump administration's push to revive the American industry. HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, South Korea's largest shipbuilder, last month announced a partnership with a company in the U.S.-based Edison Chouest Offshore group. The companies plan to build container ships that can run partly on liquefied natural gas, hoping to begin deliveries by 2028.
