November 05, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Tech giant LG Electronics announced on March 1 that it would construct a new manufacturing plant in the US.

The move comes after the Trump administration’s threat to levy heavier taxes on companies that outsource components from overseas or manufacturer products outside of the US.

Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam (left) and Dan Song, president of the LG’s home appliance and air solutions company, shake hands after signing a memorandum of understanding for the firm's plan to build a home appliance plant in Tennessee.(LG Electronics)

The new home appliance plant, measuring 77,000 square meters, will be built near Clarksville, Tennessee and will start produce front- and top-load washers from 2019.

The US$250-million construction project itself will bring in at least 600 full-time jobs to the area, the Seoul-based tech giant said.

LG also hinted that it could build additional manufacturing facilities for other home appliances on the 125-hectare site in the same area.

“LG is proud to make further investments in America, to create jobs and to bring state-of-the-art home appliance production technology to the great state of Tennessee,” said Dan Song, president of the LG’s home appliance and air solutions company.

Some critics said the decision to build the new manufacturing facility was made due to the Trump administration’s hostile stance toward foreign companies and importers.

During his presidential campaign, and after his inauguration, US President Donald Trump threatened to retreat to protectionism, vowing to slap higher tariffs on foreign products and to bring back manufacturing facilities operated by US firms in global markets to US soil.

Some Korean companies, including Samsung Electronics and Hyundai Motors, have hinted that they are considering to build new manufacturing facilities in the US to avoid heavier taxes.

By Kim Young-won (wone0102@heraldcorp.com)