The South Korean shipbuilder HD Hyundai Heavy Industries announced on Sunday that it had reached an agreement with Huntington Ingalls, a U.S. military vessel builder, to jointly construct auxiliary ships for the U.S. Navy.

In order to further cooperation between the two countries in the shipbuilding industry, HD Hyundai Heavy and Huntington Ingalls have signed a Memorandum of Agreement in Gyeongju (South Korea), where Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation events will be held throughout next week.

In a few short days, U.S. president Donald Trump will visit Gyeongju and hold a summit with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung.

According to HD Hyundai Heavy, under the agreement the two companies would explore joint investments for building new shipyards in the U.S. or purchasing existing shipbuilding facilities.

South Korea, which has agreed to invest $350 billion into U.S. projects following the tariff reductions won by the United States in late July, has committed to investing $150 billion to help Trump revive U.S. Shipbuilding.

Details of the general tariff agreement between two countries are still being worked out. Trump said that the agreement was nearing completion, but South Korean officials claimed they were still far apart. (Reporting and editing by Ju-min Park)

(source: Reuters)