The most significant achievement is a semiconductor collaboration set to unfold over the next five years. Samsung Electronics and Broadcom signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for a $200 billion partnership focused on advanced memory semiconductor supply and AI chip production. SK Group is also pursuing a long-term supply agreement worth $750 billion with global tech giants like NVIDIA.
The scope of cooperation has expanded to include data centers and physical AI. Domestic firms and big tech companies are working on investments for AI data centers with a capacity of approximately 5GW and around 2 million NVIDIA B200 standard GPUs. Naver plans to build a global AI factory worth $10 billion with support from NVIDIA and Brookfield.
Hyundai Motor Group and NVIDIA are jointly developing a 'robot reference platform' to support university and startup robotics initiatives, while Hyundai is also pursuing a self-driving car foundry project with Waymo. Samsung SDS and Anthropic have formed a strategic partnership to explore the AI market and train engineers.
During his meetings with NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Broadcom CEO Hock Tan, and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, President Yoon invited them to participate in South Korea's three major mega projects. Huang remarked, "It is not an exaggeration to say that this is truly South Korea's golden age," to which President Yoon responded, "This is just the beginning."
The Iranian military announced that it has ceased retaliatory operations following a recent two-day suspension of U.S. attacks on Iran.
On July 26, Mohammad Akraminia, a spokesperson for the Iranian military, stated in an interview with state television that, "U.S. attacks continued until the night two days ago, but have been halted in the last two days," adding that Iran's strategy is based on retaliation, thus halting counter-operations as well.
However, he cautioned against labeling the U.S. attack suspension as a formal ceasefire. Akraminia noted, "There is still no clear and consistent strategy from the U.S. side," claiming that statements from U.S. officials and President Donald Trump, as well as movements from the U.S. Central Command, have been inconsistent.
He also suggested that the U.S. might be preparing new military operation scenarios, stating, "The current situation is not favorable for the U.S., and it is far from what they initially anticipated."
President Yoon Seok-youl has set a goal to reduce the timeline for the third phase of new city developments to less than half, drawing attention to how this can be achieved. The government plans to expedite procedures and revise related systems to accelerate the process, but there are concerns that land compensation and resident relocation remain significant obstacles.
During a real estate policy forum on July 23, President Yoon remarked, "The delays in the commencement of previously announced areas for the third phase of new cities are a serious issue," and stated, "We are reviewing ways to reduce the timeline to less than half." He added, "If necessary, we will change regulations or proceed with overlapping procedures to save time."
Earlier, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport also announced on July 16 that it plans to expedite land development procedures to advance the commencement of major public housing projects, including the third phase of new cities, by 1 to 2 years.
Meanwhile, areas designated for the third phase of new cities during the Moon Jae-in administration, such as Gwangmyeong-Siheung (67,000 households), Uiwang-Gunpo-Ansan (41,500 households), and Hwaseong Jin-an (34,000 households), are set to begin compensation procedures.
The largest area, Gwangmyeong-Siheung, has completed property evaluations for compensation in the first half of this year and has begun negotiations for compensation with land and property owners this month, a schedule that is about four months ahead of the original plan.
As the U.S.-Iran conflict continues to disrupt oil supply, Venezuelan crude oil, the world's largest oil reserve, has arrived in South Korea for the first time in over 20 years. This development raises questions about whether it can serve as an alternative to alleviate the economic and energy sovereignty vulnerabilities posed by the Hormuz and Red Sea chokepoints.
On July 26, industry sources reported that GS Caltex imported 110,000 barrels of Venezuelan crude oil last month, with an import value of $12.015 million and an average import price of $109.23 per barrel.
This marks the first import of Venezuelan crude oil by South Korea in approximately 20 years. From 2003 to 2006, South Korea imported Venezuelan heavy crude oil to replace bunker fuel, but trade ceased when former Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez intensified resource nationalism. Subsequently, U.S. economic sanctions against the Maduro regime made the import of Venezuelan crude oil an unviable option.
However, following the potential collapse of the Maduro regime earlier this year, U.S. sanctions have eased, and the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the Hormuz Strait and Red Sea due to the Middle East conflict has prompted the government and oil refining industry to seriously consider the economic viability and domestic applicability of Venezuelan crude oil imports. Moon Sin-hak, the first vice minister of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, stated in May, "Companies are in contact regarding the import of Venezuelan crude oil, and we expect results soon."