Korea JoongAng Daily - Daily News from Korea

This article is by Choi Min-ji and read by an artificial voice.

Over 9 million monthly listeners on Spotify, 58 sold-out dates on a U.S. tour, appearances at Lollapalooza in the United States, Brazil, Chile and Argentina — these are just some of the milestones Korean indie band wave to earth has racked up over the past two years.

wave to earth is made up of Kim Daniel on vocals and guitar, Shin Dong-gyu on drums and Cha Soon-jong on bass. The members handle songwriting and composition themselves. After cutting their teeth at small live clubs around Hongdae in western Seoul, the band began a fully-fledged overseas push around the end of the Covid-19 pandemic, starting with a stage at Thailand's Very Festival in 2023.

Over the next two years, wave to earth played two world tours and festival sets, drawing about 200,000 people across 107 shows overseas. The band's monthly Spotify listeners, which stood at around 300,000 three years ago, have since surged to 9.2 million — well above singer IU's 4.5 million.

Now, the band is turning its focus back home. Tickets for its three-day solo concert, "Love 0.3," set to run from Feb. 27 at Olympic Hall in Seoul's Olympic Park, sold out in a minute. The JoongAng Ilbo met the band recently at a restaurant in Itaewon-dong, central Seoul to talk about their journey.

wave to earth's music is hard to sum up in a single genre. Signature tracks like "bad" (2023), "seasons" (2020) and "love." (2023) follow the instrumentation of modern rock on the surface, but their unhurried tempos — typically in the 70 to 100 beats per minute (BPM) range — and dreamy textures leave the music floating outside easy categorization. Most of the lyrics are written in English.

"A good song doesn't require you to check a musician's nationality before listening," Kim said. "We wanted people around the world to listen to our songs without even knowing we're Korean."

The band was formed in 2018. Kim and Shin played together in a worship band in high school, and later brought in Cha after hearing he was "a friend who played bass really well," completing the trio. Their debut album, "wave," followed the next year.

"The first time the three of us played together as a full band, I got chills," Cha said. "That day I brought a soul-style bass I had planned to sell instead of my usual jazz bass, and it fit the band perfectly. I ended up selling the one I'd been using."

Another hallmark of wave to earth is its live show. Despite the band's calm, mellow recordings, Kim said he "puts on a rocker's heart" onstage. The members often break into intense improvisations, shaking their heads or jumping around.

"For albums, I want everything to sound as clean as possible, but I didn't want that for live shows," Kim said. "Once you're fully immersed, you suddenly realize your face is contorting like you're touching a slug — and you and the other members are bouncing all over the stage."

Their overseas break came as the pandemic eased. The band's first major step was appearing at the Very Festival in Thailand in 2023, after listeners who discovered wave to earth online helped build an audience abroad.

"Back when we were playing in Hongdae, it was hard to grow the crowd no matter how many shows we did," Kim said. "Even if 20 people came one time, it would be a different 20 the next time. It felt like hitting repeat. Then we got an invitation from festival organizers in Thailand when we were starting to feel the limit."

"We made it clear to the promoter that we were eager to go global," Cha said. "We studied Thai greetings for the stage, and we created chances to collaborate with local artists. By the time we left, we even had a promise for a 2,000-seat solo concert there."

Even with Korean pop culture enjoying global attention, it wasn't easy for an unknown indie band to break out overseas. The members made their own pitch decks and emailed promoters themselves. When there was no reply, they sent long messages directly to organizers via ...

This article is by Lee Jae-lim and read by an artificial voice.

Samsung Electronics received temporary occupancy approval for a significant part of its $37 billion chip plant in Taylor, Texas, paving the way for limited operations ahead of full completion scheduled for the second half of this year.

Officials of the Texan city confirmed that the Korean chipmaker has secured temporary certificates of occupancy (TCO) covering about 88,000 square feet at Fab 1, adding that the timeline for acquiring permits for rest of the building areas was not finalized.

"The fab building is being issued Temporary Certificates of Occupancy by area," a Taylor city official said. "To date, approximately 88,000 square feet has been TCO'd. Larger areas are anticipated to follow; however, the timing for those spaces has not yet been established."

Still, the approval reflects Samsung's commitment to accelerating the ramp-up of the facility for advanced semiconductors following a $16.5 billion supply deal struck with Tesla in July of last year amid robust demand for chips across the board.

Signs of progress continue to emerge: on Thursday, a Korean semiconductor equipment and services provider known as Device said in a regulatory filing that it had secured a 10.9 billion won ($7.4 million) contract with Samsung's U.S. subsidiary to supply semiconductor cleaning equipment by Oct. 26, with the gear widely expected to be destined for Samsung's Taylor fab.

Under its agreement with local authorities, Samsung is required to complete 6 million square feet of floorspace by the end of this year, with another 1 million square feet scheduled to be added by 2028. The overall campus spans 1,268 acres.

Construction appears to be progressing on schedule. Multiple reports indicate that the plant is set to begin testing its extreme ultraviolet lithography equipment next month — an essential step for producing advanced 2-nanometer chips — ahead of a full production ramp-up in the second half of the year.

Once mass production begins, the facility is expected to manufacture Tesla's AI5 chips under a contract running through 2033, which also covers future AI6 chips.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently said on X that the design of the AI5 chip is nearly finished and that work on the next-generation AI6 is already underway. He has signaled a goal of a nine-month design cycle for successive chips, with plans extending as far as AI9.

There are also indications that Samsung Foundry is seeking additional U.S. customers beyond Tesla, with Google and AMD frequently mentioned as potential partners. A source familiar with the situation told the Korea JoongAng Daily that recent price increases by rival chipmaker TSMC have made Samsung a more attractive option for U.S. technology firms.

This shift is further influenced by Taiwan's "N-2" policy, which restricts TSMC's most advanced 2-nanometer production to facilities on the island until at least 2028. As a result, TSMC's Arizona plant will not be able to produce its cutting-edge chips until roughly four years after they debut in Taiwan, even though TSMC began mass production of its 2-nanometer process in December.

Kang Suk-chae, Samsung Foundry's executive vice president, said during a recent conference call that the company has been in talks with major U.S. and Chinese clients following the Tesla deal. He added that Samsung aims to secure "more than 130 percent" in 2-nanometer orders this year compared to 2025, driven by demand for high-performance computing and AI applications.

Separately, as part of a January trade agreement, Taiwan committed to investing $500 billion over the next decade to relocate portions of its semiconductor supply chain to the United States. Much of this effort is expected to be led by TSMC, which is reportedly considering expanding its Arizona footprint to as many as 11 total plants. TSMC's capital spending for this year is projected to be between $52 and $56 billion, up as much as 40 percent from 2025.

Samsun...

Na Sung-in

The author is a music critic and director of the classical music brand Poongwoldang.

Music is a powerful tool for cultivating sensitivity to time. Whether fast, slow, moderate or constantly shifting, music helps steady our breathing by freeing us, if only briefly, from the pace of everyday life. Fast-tempo pieces provide momentum and drive. Slower music invites introspection. Dance music, often set at a moderate tempo, moves between speed and stillness, reminding us that we possess the ability to regulate our own rhythm.

Today, however, the tempo of daily life leans overwhelmingly toward speed. Adults and children alike live with little room for pause. Any moment of stillness is often criticized as idleness, while individuals themselves grow anxious when doing nothing. Platforms such as YouTube and smartphones fill nearly every spare minute. More troubling is the quiet normalization of structures that deprive people of breathing space in their daily lives. Because everyone is busy, the loss of such space is easily overlooked. Yet when life becomes defined solely by speed, people gradually forget how to steady their own breathing and recover balance.

Listening to music reminds us that human life does not exist solely in submission to chronological time. Reading a book offers a similar experience, allowing time to expand or contract according to one's breathing, enabling moments to be felt quickly or slowly. Consider Vikingur Olafsson's performance of Jean-Philippe Rameau's "La Poule" (1728), often introduced in Korea as a rondeau-style musette. The piece unfolds as an elegant dance. Though measured in pace, it never remains still, moving with quiet assurance. From its ability to sustain balance at every moment, it flows with both dignity and vitality. Even this brief work allows listeners to step away from relentless speed and breathe more comfortably.

Music should not remain the privilege of those with leisure. It should also belong to those forced to rush through their days without even the time to eat properly. For such a vision to become reality, society must foster a willingness to share time with others. In essence, this impulse reflects the fundamental spirit of music itself. Music does not exist in isolation. It unfolds through listening, adjusting and moving forward together in harmony.

Whether our society is sufficiently "musical," therefore, becomes a question about more than art or culture. It is a question about how people coexist. A truly musical society would recognize the need for pauses as well as motion, valuing moments of rest as essential rather than wasteful.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.

The author is the head of the research center at Shinyoung Securities.

Warmth in the global economy rarely spreads evenly. Some sectors enjoy abundance while others endure scarcity. Korea's stock market and real economy now reflect this contrast. The benchmark Kospi has climbed into the 5,000-point range, marking a historic leap, yet the broader economy remains mired in stagnation. The coexistence of market euphoria and public anxiety has fueled debate over whether rising share prices are detached from economic fundamentals and whether the rally is sustainable.

While the gap between economic conditions and stock performance is real, the argument that the stock market represents a bubble is less convincing. The reason lies in the difference between economic indicators and corporate earnings that investors focus on.

By gross domestic product standards, economic performance has been weak. Korea's GDP growth last year barely exceeded 1 percent, the fifth-lowest rate since the country entered full-scale industrial development in the 1960s. Growth is projected to recover to around 2 percent this year, roughly matching potential growth, but this still represents historically low performance. Unlike past slowdowns triggered by shocks such as the second oil crisis, the 1997 Asian financial crisis, the global financial crisis or the Covid-19 pandemic, the recent deceleration has occurred without a single defining external shock, suggesting deeper structural challenges.

GDP measures total economic activity within a nation's borders, making it an appropriate gauge of domestic demand. Private consumption accounted for 48 percent of Korea's GDP in 2025, followed by government spending at 22 percent. Construction and facility investment represented 11.2 percent and 9.5 percent, respectively. These components indicate that more than 90 percent of Korea's GDP is tied to domestic economic activity.

The outlook for domestic demand remains bleak. Private consumption, the largest economic pillar, is constrained by heavy household debt tied to real estate. With funds locked into housing and loan repayments rising, households have limited room to increase spending. Meanwhile, Korea's modern infrastructure, built during its rapid development, limits the effectiveness of large-scale construction projects as a stimulus tool. The direct cause of Korea's recent GDP slowdown has been weak construction investment, which declined for five consecutive years from 2021 through 2025, an unprecedented trend.

Corporate investment presents another concern. Large conglomerates continue to invest aggressively, but increasingly direct their spending overseas. Commitments, including roughly $350 billion in investment in the United States, have fueled concerns about capital outflow and potential hollowing out of domestic manufacturing.

Exports tell a very different story. Korea's exports reached $69.5 billion in January, a 34 percent increase from a year earlier. Semiconductor shipments have driven the surge, and the stock market largely reflects the semiconductor cycle. The Kospi closed at 5,288 points on Tuesday, a record high. Excluding semiconductor leaders Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, however, the index would stand near 4,225 points, more than 1,000 points lower.

Viewed through the lens of sluggish domestic demand, even a Kospi level in the 4,200 range might appear elevated. Yet share prices of domestic demand-oriented sectors remain far below historical peaks. The food and beverage industry index stood at 4,653 points as of Tuesday, compared with its all-time high of 6,299 points recorded in August 2015. Retail stocks are trading at about 67 percent of their historical peak set in January 1990, while textile and apparel stocks remain near 20 percent of their 1994 high. Construction, paper and timber indices, which peaked in 1995, currently trade at roughly 19 percent and 15 percent of their historical highs, respectively.

These trends suggest that dome...

The author is a senior editorial writer at the JoongAng Ilbo.

Owners of multiple homes have long been an easy political target in Korea. Households without homes or with only one home make up the majority of voters. Politicians frequently frame owners of multiple homes as speculators who drive up housing prices, turning them into convenient public adversaries. Political reality often revolves around attacking perceived enemies, which explains why policies targeting owners of multiple homes have repeatedly taken priority in government housing measures. Yet aside from a small number of aggressive speculators, most owners of multiple homes have personal or economic reasons for owning additional properties. These include inheritance, investment or operating rental housing businesses. In some cases, siblings who jointly inherit property face difficulties selling it. Regardless of motivation, such owners also supply rental housing and help stabilize lease markets.

The government has decided to end the temporary suspension of heavy capital gains taxes on owners of multiple homes. During the process, owners of multiple homes have once again been portrayed as primary contributors to surging housing prices, reinforcing support for punitive tax measures. What remains disappointing is that deeper discussion about whether higher capital gains taxes actually stabilize housing prices has been largely overshadowed. The tax policy has effectively become an unquestioned approach under the current administration.

The heavy capital gains tax on owners of multiple homes was first introduced in 2004 under the Roh Moo-hyun administration. It was later suspended or abolished under the Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye administrations, reinstated under Moon Jae-in, suspended again during the Yoon Suk Yeol administration and is now set to return as the suspension expires. Progressive administrations have tended to implement the policy, while conservative governments have typically eased or abolished it.

Housing prices have fluctuated sharply during this period. According to KB Real Estate data, Seoul apartment prices surged 55.7 percent under Roh Moo-hyun, declined 4.5 percent during Lee Myung-bak, rose 10.2 percent under Park Geun-hye and soared 61.9 percent under Moon Jae-in. Prices then fell 6.4 percent under Yoon Suk Yeol before rising again by 8.1 percent under the current administration from June 2025 through January 2026. Notably, housing prices surged during progressive administrations that enforced heavier capital gains taxes and stabilized or declined during conservative administrations that relaxed them. While housing prices are influenced by multiple factors including economic growth, interest rates, credit availability and taxation, heavier capital gains taxes appear to have contributed to supply constraints by discouraging owners of multiple homes from selling properties.

President Lee Jae Myung recently argued on social media that individuals purchasing multiple homes have driven prices and rents to unsustainable levels, discouraging marriage and childbirth. Although rising housing prices undoubtedly impose severe burdens on younger generations, attributing price increases solely to owners of multiple homes oversimplifies complex market dynamics.

Market analysts point to several other major drivers behind rising housing prices under the current administration. First is declining housing supply: In Seoul alone, new housing completions are projected to fall to 29,161 units this year, down 31.6 percent from 42,611 units last year, according to Real Estate R114. Another driver is growing market anxiety. Regulatory pressure on owners of multiple homes has intensified demand for what buyers call a "smart single home," referring to the strategy of concentrating assets in one high-value property. This phenomenon reflects how households adapt to government tax and housing policies while anticipating continued price increases due to limited sup...

Pressure from the United States to raise reciprocal tariffs by 25 percent under U.S. President Donald Trump shows little sign of easing, raising concerns about a potential strain in Korea-U. S. economic relations. Despite intensified diplomatic efforts by Seoul, a breakthrough remains elusive.

Minister of Trade, Industry and Resources Kim Jung-kwan recently held a video conference with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, while Foreign Minister Cho Hyun asked U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio to withdraw or postpone the tariff increase. However, negotiations have yet to produce concrete progress. The Korean government is prioritizing efforts to block the tariff increase from being formally announced in the U.S. Federal Register while also considering contingency plans aimed at delaying enforcement if the measure proceeds.

Some observers worry that Washington may link tariff negotiations to broader security issues previously discussed between the two allies, including nuclear-powered submarine development and expanded authority over uranium enrichment and nuclear fuel reprocessing. Although such concerns remain unconfirmed, they highlight growing anxiety surrounding the negotiations.

To stabilize bilateral relations and protect national interests, experts stress the need for a pragmatic approach that balances concessions with strategic gains. One priority involves addressing U.S. concerns about Korea's commitment to invest in the United States. In this regard, the National Assembly is moving forward with a special bill designed to facilitate those investments. Opposition parties have reportedly withdrawn demands for full parliamentary ratification and agreed to form a special committee tasked with passing the legislation within one month, a development viewed as constructive.

Separately, as presidential policy chief Kim Yong-beom suggested, conducting preliminary reviews of commercially viable investment projects before the bill's passage could help ease U.S. doubts about Korea's investment commitment.

At the same time, policymakers are urged to manage other sensitive bilateral issues carefully. Disputes related to online platform regulation, the ongoing controversy involving Coupang and joint Korea-UN Command management of the demilitarized zone could become potential sources of friction. Analysts warn that such issues could indirectly influence trade negotiations under the Trump administration.

Korea's business community is also monitoring developments closely. Leaders of the country's 10 largest conglomerates recently told President Lee Jae Myung they plan to invest 270 trillion won ($202 billion) domestically over the next five years. Corporate profitability remains critical for sustaining domestic investment and securing tax revenue.

If the United States proceeds with the tariff increase, Korean exporters could face significant challenges. The experience of Hyundai Motor Group, whose operating profits declined following earlier tariff measures, illustrates the potential impact on export-driven industries. Analysts emphasize that the government must carefully coordinate diplomatic, trade and security considerations to minimize economic risks.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.

This article is by Alicia Carr and read by an artificial voice.

[GIVE IT A GO]

On a frosty Tuesday morning, dressed in UGG boots, old jeans and a heavy wool coat, I exited the subway at Bukhansan Ui Station and was instantly met with views of the national park encompassing Mount Bukhan. I had loose plans to hike the famous Baegundae Peak.

Was I ready for a technical climb with 800 meters (2,600 feet) of elevation to scale? Probably not. Did I know where I was going? Not really. I was counting on the Seoul Hiking Tourism Center to solve all of those problems for me.

"K-hiking" has become the latest trend among foreign tourists in Korea. In 2025, 582,077 foreigners had visited national parks around the country by September. Easy access to mountains, immaculately maintained trails and even free Wi-Fi at some summits are just a few of the draws for tourists craving an outdoor adventure without ever leaving the city.

At the three Seoul Hiking Tourism Centers around the city, visitors are offered a surprisingly luxurious introduction to the activity, with comfortable lounges, dressing rooms, lockers, full gear rental and assistance in planning your hike — though notably, no showers. As an avid hiker, it was an experience I was eager to test out.

The center at the base of Bukhansan National Park sits just a five-minute walk from the subway station — though, in my case, it admittedly took a little longer. I walked straight past the building not once, but twice. In my defense, the center is tucked away on the fifth floor, with minimal signage visible from the street, making it a place you're unlikely to find unless you know exactly what you're looking for. Regardless, being able to take the subway to a mountain was nothing like what I was used to.

When I arrived, I was greeted by the soft hum of elevator music and a friendly staff member who ushered me inside. The center was empty. Not another hiker or tourist in sight. It seemed, unlike me, most people had reached the sensible conclusion that going hiking in the middle of winter might not be the best idea.

The staff began to take my sizes and fitted me with boots, crampons and a full hiking outfit from Black Yak, a high-end Korean outdoor brand favored by locals and pros. It was quite the upgrade from what I had arrived in. I suddenly looked the part.

That morning, I had harbored some mild reservations about renting hiking gear that had likely been used by countless others. But, in the moment, I didn't even question it. The gear looked practically brand new and it only cost about 14,000 won ($10) for the full day.

I was impressed. In my native New Zealand, such a service is unheard of. You could maybe borrow gear somewhere in the city before you drove two hours out of town to the start of the trail. But a rental service with such a huge range of affordable gear right at the trailhead? Never. And there was certainly no public transportation to the mountain.

After changing into my new outfit and stowing my belongings in a locker, we moved to the lounge area, a dedicated space for hikers to plan their trip, pack their gear and rest ahead of their big climb.

The staff pulled out several maps, reached for an array of brightly colored highlighters and, in perfect English, began outlining my different trail options. I eventually settled on the route to the Baegundae summit.

It was here that I discovered we were, actually, nowhere near the start of the trail. I was given two options: Take a taxi or walk 45 minutes up the road. My enthusiasm wavered for a moment as I silently questioned the so-called accessibility of Seoul's mountains. Bukhansan was still remarkably close but just not as immediate as I had initially assumed. I started the Strava exercise-tracking app on my watch and I set off on foot anyway, highlighted map in hand. Initially thought to be a bit of an inconvenience, I found the walk revealed how seamlessly the mountains and the urban landscape intertwine.

After taking a ...

This article is by Lee Jian. and read by an artificial voice.

Must art endure forever to be meaningful?

Traditionally, museums and collectors have treated all great artworks as timeless objects, meant to last unchanged across generations. But a quietly radical exhibition now open at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMCA) questions — and challenges — this fundamental notion through a show centered on art that decomposes in real time.

Known as decay art, or auto-destructive art, it is a form of artistic practice in which change, breakdown and disappearance are intentionally built into the work. Rather than resisting damage or aging, artists allow materials to weaken, rot or dissolve over time.

The exhibition, titled "Sak-da: The Poetics of Decomposition," takes its name from the Korean verb sakda, primarily meaning to change shape or break down due to age, while also carrying connotations of fermentation and the development of flavor. Drawing on this dual definition, the exhibition identifies decay art as a major body of contemporary art that highlights beauty in vulnerability and the ethical possibilities of coexisting with time and all living beings.

However, different forms of decay art have existed for centuries.

Japan's Kusōzu, for instance, is a genre of Buddhist paintings from the 13th century that depict the decay of a woman's corpse in nine visceral images, historically used as a form of "aversion therapy" for Buddhist monks, aimed at overcoming sexual desire and attachment to the human body.

Europe's Vanitas and Memento Mori paintings from the 16th and 17th centuries used decay-related symbols like skulls, wilting flowers and smoking candles to emphasize the vanity of earthly pleasures and inevitability of death.

Italy's Arte Povera movement in the 1960s and 70s rejected polished materials in favor of earth, plants, cloth and industrial waste — substances that naturally change or degrade — to challenge commercialism and blur the boundary between art and life.

Decay art has also been a subject of overtly subversive art. Damien Hirst's "The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living" (1991), for example, presents an actual dead shark preserved in formaldehyde, confronting viewers with mortality and the inevitability of decay. Lee Bul's "Majestic Splendor" (1991–97) consists of raw, rotting fish sequinned and sealed in transparent bags, invoking bodily vulnerability and Korean attitudes toward female sexuality.

More recently, decay art — contrary to its name — has become more closely tied to life, intersecting with bio-art, ecological art and sustainability-driven practice. This is the lineage MMCA foregrounds.

Lee Eun-jae's "Now Polish the Corners of Geundae" (2023), painted with egg yolk, hangs at the entrance to the exhibition's "Prologue." By working with egg yolk, the artist intends to relay the inherent limitations of painting as a medium, both physically and figuratively, as a form of expression.

Composed of numerous small canvases, each panel carries a subtly different shade of yellow derived from the egg, already cracked and fading in places upon close inspection. Etched across the work is the artist's account of a recurring dream of failure and the necessity of accepting one's limits. Yet the luminous yellows suggest not resignation, but an unrelenting effort to continue working within — and against — those limits.

The exhibition then opens into a white-cube gallery hall filled with mounds of fresh, pillowy soil. Asad Raza's "Absorption" is a "worlding project" that involves creating, maintaining and distributing artificial fertile soil made from waste, dubbed "neosoil," within exhibition spaces. In the Seoul edition, the soil is produced using fried chicken bones, in collaboration with Seoul National University's Soil Biogeochemistry Lab. Visitors are encouraged to take a bagful home for their potted plants, gesturing toward an inherent collectivity — artists and non-...

This article is by Sarah Chea and read by an artificial voice.

한국의 대표 영어신문, 코리아중앙데일리가 특종과 단독 인터뷰, 주요 기사를 한글로 요약해 드립니다. 독자들의 많은 성원 바랍니다.

지난해 한국의 미국산 원유 수입량이 1억7489만 배럴로 집계되며 사상 최고치를 기록했다. 이는 도널드 트럼프 행정부가 관세 협상 과정에서 강조한 원유 수출 확대 기조의 영향으로 보인다. 특히 지난 관세 협상에서 한국이 1000억 달러 상당의 미국산 에너지 제품을 구매하기로 약속한 만큼, 올해 미국산 원유 수입은 더욱 가파르게 늘어날 전망이다.

4일 한국석유공사에 따르면 지난해 한국이 미국에서 들여온 원유 수입량은 1억7489만 배럴로 역대 최대였던 전년(1억6841만 배럴)을 넘어섰다. 수입액은 128억7831만 달러(약 18조6000억원)에 달한다. 이에 따라 미국은 부동의 최대 공급국인 사우디아라비아(3억4543만 배럴)에 이어 한국의 두 번째 원유 공급국으로 떠올랐다.

미국산 원유 수입 물량 비중도 17%를 넘어섰다. 1위 사우디아라비아(33.6%)와는 격차가 있지만, 아랍에미리트(1억1699만 배럴), 이라크(1억695만 배럴), 쿠웨이트(8744만 배럴) 등 원유 수출 경쟁국를 따돌리고 2위로 올라섰다.

같은 기간 캐나다산 원유 수입도 크게 늘었다. 2024년 137만 배럴에 그쳤던 수입량은 지난해 454만 배럴로 약 230% 급증했다. 한국이 원가 절감과 수입선 다변화를 추진하는 과정에서 미국·중동산보다 최대 10~15% 저렴한 가격 경쟁력을 갖춘 캐나다산 원유 도입에 속도가 붙었다.

미국산 원유는 물리적 거리로 인해 운송비 부담이 크다. 미국 서부에서 한국까지 운송에는 최대 50일이 소요돼 중동산(최대 30일)보다 20일가량 더 걸린다. 국내 정유 공정이 중동산 중질유에 맞춰 설계돼 있어, 상대적으로 가벼운 미국산 경질유는 처리 과정에서 가동률이 떨어질 수 있다는 점도 단점이다.

그럼에도 미국산 원유 수입이 늘어난 배경에는 트럼프 행정부의 통상 압박이라는 정책적 요인이 크게 작용했다. 트럼프 행정부는 관세를 지렛대로 미국산 에너지 수입 확대를 지속적으로 요구해왔다. 실제로 트럼프 대통령은 인도에 50% 관세를 부과했다가, 인도가 러시아산 원유 수입 중단과 미국산 원유 구매 확대를 약속하자 관세율을 18%로 대폭 낮췄다.

과거 한국의 미국산 원유 수입이 본격적으로 늘기 시작한 시점은 트럼프 행정부 1기(2017년 1월~2021년 1월)다. 출범 직전인 2016년 한국의 미국산 원유 수입량은 245만 배럴로 전체의 0.2%에 불과했지만, 2017년 1343만 배럴(1%대)로 늘었고 2018년 6094만 배럴(5.5%), 2019년 1억3789만 배럴(13%)로 급증했다.

김대종 세종대 경영학부 교수는 "지난해 한국의 대미 무역흑자는 약 80조원에 달한다"며 "트럼프 대통령이 이를 줄이려는 상황에서 미국산 원유 수입 확대는 한국이 선택할 수 있는 현실적인 대응책 가운데 하나"라고 말했다.

미국산 원유의 수입 비중은 올해 더 빠르게 증가할 전망이다. 지난해 7월 열린 한·미 관세 협상에서 한국은 트럼프 임기 동안 1000억 달러 규모의 미국산 에너지 제품 구매에 합의했으며, 이 가운데 상당 부분이 원유로 알려졌다. 산업통상부에서 석유 수입을 담당하는 한 관계자는 "국가 차원의 원유 수입은 비축유 물량으로, 기존 중동산 비축분 일부를 미국산으로 대체할 계획"이라고 설명했다. 한국석유공사는 지난해 중동산 중질유 600만 배럴을 미국산 경질유로 대체했다.

정부 정책에 정유업계도 호응할 가능성이 크다. 미국산 원유는 한·미 자유무역협정(FTA)에 따라 3% 관세가 면제된다. 여기에 수입선 다변화를 위해 운송비 부담이 큰 미국산 원유를 들여올 경우, 중동산과의 비용 차액 일부를 보전하는 제도도 운영되고 있다.

지난해 기준 국가별 원유 수입 단가를 살펴보면, 미국산은 배럴당 73.64달러로 사우디아라비아(73.80달러), 아랍에미리트(75.11달러)보다 낮았다. 한 정유업계 관계자는 "경제성이 확보된다면 미국산 원유 수입을 확대하지 않을 이유가 없다"며 "운송·환율 등 불리한 요소가 있지만, 한미 통상 등 정부 차원의 필요가 있다면 협조할 수 있는 부분"이라고 말했다.

영어 원문

Korea's imports of U.S. crude oil hit a record high of 174.9 million barrels last year, according to government data, due primarily to U.S. President Donald Trump's push to expand energy exports through tariff negotiations.

With Korea pledging to purchase $100 billion worth of U.S. energy products in the next four years as part of the tariff deal, Korea's U.S. crude imports are anticipated to jump further this year.

Korea imported 174.89 million barrels of crude oil from the United States last year, comfortably surpassing the previous record of 168.4 million barrels set a year earlier, according to data from the Korea National Oil Corporation.

By value, it reached $12.9 billion.

The United States accounted for 17 percent of Korea's crude oil imports in 2025 — second only to Saudi Arabia at 33.6 percent, and higher than the United Arab Emirates at 11.4 percent, Iraq at 10.4 percent and Kuwait at 8.5 percent.

Imports of Canadian crude oil also surged, rising nearly 230 percent to 4.54 million barrels last year, as Korea eyes Canada as a way to diversify its supply chain. Canadian oil is around 10 to 15 percent cheaper than oil from the United States and the Middle East.

Imports of U.S. crude oil entail logistical and operational drawbacks, with the longer shipping distance being the most significant. Shipments from the U.S. West Coast to Korea typically take up to 50 days, compared to roughly 30 days from the Middle East. Even after arrival, refiners struggle to refine the lighter U.S. crude as local infrastructure is primarily calibrated for heavier Middle Eastern oil.

Despite the disadvantages, imports of American crude have continued to rise, driven by Washington's intensified demands for greater purchases of U.S. energy. In one high-profile case, Trump imposed a 50 percent tariff on India but later cut it to 18 percent after securing a tangible c...

This article is by Sarah Chea and read by an artificial voice.

Korea's imports of U.S. crude oil hit a record high of 174.9 million barrels last year, according to government data, due primarily to U.S. President Donald Trump's push to expand energy exports through tariff negotiations.

With Korea pledging to purchase $100 billion worth of U.S. energy products in the next four years as part of the tariff deal, Korea's U.S. crude imports are anticipated to jump further this year.

Korea imported 174.89 million barrels of crude oil from the United States last year, comfortably surpassing the previous record of 168.4 million barrels set a year earlier, according to data from the Korea National Oil Corporation.

By value, it reached $12.9 billion.

The United States accounted for 17 percent of Korea's crude oil imports in 2025 — second only to Saudi Arabia at 33.6 percent, and higher than the United Arab Emirates at 11.4 percent, Iraq at 10.4 percent and Kuwait at 8.5 percent.

Imports of Canadian crude oil also surged, rising nearly 230 percent to 4.54 million barrels last year, as Korea eyes Canada as a way to diversify its supply chain. Canadian oil is around 10 to 15 percent cheaper than oil from the United States and the Middle East.

Despite the disadvantages, imports of American crude have continued to rise, driven by Washington's intensified demands for greater purchases of U.S. energy. In one high-profile case, Trump imposed a 50 percent tariff on India but later cut it to 18 percent after securing a tangible commitment from New Delhi to halt imports of Russian crude and expand purchases of U.S. oil.

"A substantial expansion of U.S. crude oil imports could emerge as one of Korea's viable options to address pressure from Trump, who wishes to narrow the U.S. trade deficit with Korea, which stood at around 80 trillion won [$55 billion] last year," said Kim Dae-jong, a business professor at Sejong University.

In fact, Korea's imports of U.S. crude oil sharply increased during Trump's first term, which ran from January 2017 to January 2021. Korea imported only 2.4 million barrels of U.S. crude in 2016, accounting for a mere 0.2 percent of total imports, but that figure rose to 13.4 million barrels in 2017, 60.9 million barrels in 2018 and 137.9 million barrels in 2019.

"Crude purchases at the national level are largely intended for strategic stockpiles, and we plan to replace part of those reserves — traditionally sourced from the Middle East — with U.S. crude," an official at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources, told the Korea JoongAng Daily.

The Korea National Oil Corporation last year alone substituted 6 million barrels of Middle Eastern heavy crude in its strategic reserves with oil from the United States.

Under the Korea–U.S. FTA, American crude oil is exempt from a 3 percent tariff. The government offers partial compensation for the cost differential when refiners import higher-transport-cost crude, relative to cheaper-to-ship Middle Eastern grades.

The average import price of U.S. crude was $73.64 a barrel, lower than Saudi crude at $73.80 and United Arab Emirates crude at $75.11.

"If the economics make sense, there is no reason not to expand imports of U.S. crude," said an industry source from a domestic refinery. "There are disadvantages related to transportation and currency exchange, but if there is a broader policy need tied to Korea–U.S. trade relations, that is an area where we can cooperate."