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South Korea's FDI Hits Record $36B in 2025 on Political Stability, APEC Boost

Foreign direct investment pledges to South Korea reached a historic $36.05 billion in 2025, marking a 4.3% increase from the previous year. The rebound is attributed to eased political uncertainties following the inauguration of President Lee Jae Myung's administration, which replaced the impeached former President Yoon Suk Yeol. The APEC summit in Gyeongju also played a crucial role, with companies like AWS and Siemens announcing major investment plans. Investments surged in advanced industries like AI and semiconductors, with the US and EU being leading sources of new commitments.

Key Points: South Korea FDI Pledges Hit Record High in 2025

  • Record $36.05B in FDI pledges
  • Rebound linked to new Lee Jae Myung administration
  • APEC summit spurred $9B in corporate plans
  • Greenfield investments hit all-time high
2 min read

FDI pledges to S. Korea hit record high in 2025 amid eased political uncertainties

South Korea's foreign direct investment pledges reached a record $36.05 billion in 2025, driven by eased political uncertainty and the APEC summit.

"FDI pledges to the country... sharply rebounded in the second half after the administration of President Lee Jae Myung set sail. - Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy"

Seoul, Jan 7

Foreign direct investment pledges to South Korea reached a record high of over $36 billion in 2025, government data showed on Wednesday, thanks to eased political uncertainties here and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation gathering held in the country's southeastern city of Gyeongju.

Last year, South Korea received $36.05 billion worth of FDI commitments, up 4.3 percent from $34.57 billion in 2024, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources, reports Yonhap news agency.

In 2025, the actual amount of investment that arrived in the country also surged 16.3 percent from a year earlier to $17.95 billion.

The ministry said FDI pledges to the country had declined 14.6 percent on-year as of end-June but sharply rebounded in the second half after the administration of President Lee Jae Myung set sail to replace the previous administration of former President Yoon Suk Yeol, who was impeached over his failed martial law bid in late 2024.

The APEC summit, held late October in Gyeongju, also helped the country attract foreign investment, it added.

During the APEC gathering, seven global companies, including Amazon Web Services (AWS), Renault, Amkor Technology and Siemens Healthineers, unveiled plans to invest a combined $9 billion in Korea.

Notably, foreign pledges for greenfield investments in Korea rose 7.1 percent on-year to an all-time high of $28.59 billion in 2025, with investment pledges for advanced industries, such as artificial intelligence (AI), semiconductor and biohealth, growing from a year earlier.

By industry, FDI commitments in the manufacturing sector grew 8.8 percent to $15.77 billion, with many new commitments in the materials sector for advanced industries amid global efforts to respond to supply chain uncertainties.

Commitments in the service sector climbed 6.8 percent on-year to $19.05 billion, mainly driven by investment plans for AI data centers and online platforms.

By country, fresh investment pledges from the United States spiked 86.6 percent to $9.77 billion, mainly led by the metals, distribution and IT sectors.

FDI pledges from the European Union jumped 35.7 percent to $6.92 billion, while those from Japan and China went down 28.1 percent and 38 percent to $4.4 billion and $3.59 billion, respectively.

The ministry said it will work to strengthen incentives and streamline regulations to attract more foreign investment this year.

- IANS

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Reader Comments

S
Sarah B
The sharp rebound after the political transition is fascinating. It proves that investors hate uncertainty. The focus on AI, semiconductors, and biohealth is the real story here—every nation, including India, is competing for these future-tech investments.
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Priya S
$9 billion from just seven companies at APEC is huge! It shows the power of hosting international summits. India hosted G20 recently, and we should leverage such platforms more aggressively to showcase our manufacturing and tech sectors to global CEOs.
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Rohit P
Interesting to see US investment spike by 86% while China's fell by 38%. The global supply chain re-alignment is very real. For India, this is a golden opportunity to position ourselves as the most reliable alternative for advanced manufacturing.
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Nikhil C
While the numbers are good, the article mentions the need to "streamline regulations." That's the key for any country. Sometimes I feel our processes in India are still too bureaucratic and slow. We have the potential, but execution on the ground needs to match the policy announcements.
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Meera T
The focus on greenfield investments (setting up new operations) is more valuable than just mergers & acquisitions. It creates more jobs and builds long-term capacity. Hope our 'Make in India' and PLI schemes can attract similar high-quality, new projects in electronics and semiconductors.

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