U.S. Corning to invest $1.5 bn to build production facility in Korea

Corning Chief Executive Officer Wendell Weeks greets at a press conference to mark the 50th anniversary of Corning’s investment in Korea at the Shilla Hotel in Seoul on Aug. 31. [Courtesy of Corning]

Corning Inc., the world’s top manufacturer of specialty glass for displays, will invest $1.5 billion to build a new production facility in Asan, South Chungcheong Province.

The investment involves building the world’s first integrated supply chain for bendable glass for cell phones, according to Corning Chief Executive Officer Wendell Weeks on Thursday.

Bendable glass is mainly used in foldable phones such as Samsung Electronics Co.’s Galaxy Z Fold and Galaxy Z Flip. Asan is home to a factory operated by Samsung Display Co.

The investment will be made over five years.

In a press conference, Weeks said that his company is grateful to Korea for giving Corning a second home and that it is committed to making Korea a global hub for ultra-thin bendable glass manufacturing.

Corning entered Korea in 1973 and has invested more than $10 billion in the country over the past 50 years, creating thousands of jobs. The investment is noteworthy as it comes amid a recent reshoring push by the U.S government to bring back production bases to the U.S.

While global supply chains are undergoing rapid change amid the U.S.-China conflict, Corning’s investment shows that Korea is able to attract large-scale investment from foreign companies if it builds a strong ecosystem for new industries. Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol met with Weeks during his visit to the U.S. in April.

Analysts underscore the importance of attracting foreign companies in a time when Korean companies are expanding their investments overseas, especially in the U.S., and domestic investment is sluggish.

The net outflow of corporate investment from Korea hit a record high of $62.2 billion last year as companies competed for subsidies from major countries driven by the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Net outflows are defined as outward direct investment (ODI) minus foreign direct investment (FDI).

In the first half of this year, FDI amounted to $7.75 billion, or 42.7 percent of last year’s annual investment. The government introduced the K-Chips Act, an amendment to the Act on Restriction on Special Cases Concerning Taxation, which provides up to 35 percent tax refunds for investments in national strategic technologies such as semiconductors and secondary batteries, but it has not been effective thus far.

According to Statistics Korea on Thursday, domestic facility investment fell by the largest amount at 8.9 percent in more than 11 years in July. The Bank of Korea expects facility investment to contract 3 percent this year, even more from 2 percent last year.

“It is urgent to attract key overseas companies to Korea in terms of supply chain stability and technology acquisition,” said Lee Pil-sang, a professor at Seoul National University. “It is necessary to consider extending the temporary investment tax credit, which provides a 10 percent tax credit for increased investment.”