KOTRA "Monitoring 'Buy America'... Supporting Entry into US Procurement Market"

Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy & KOTRA Hold 'U.S. Procurement Market and Buy America Seminar'
Our Companies Show Strong Interest in U.S. Preference Movements

KOTRA held a 'U.S. Procurement Market and Buy America Seminar' on the 7th at the Payto Hotel in Gangnam, together with the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

At this seminar, representatives from KOTRA, the Korea Institute of Public Procurement and Policy, and the law firm Bae, Kim & Lee LLC served as speakers, and about 60 domestic companies of interest participated, showing strong interest in recent changes in U.S. policies.

The Buy America regulation is a U.S. procurement preference system that mandates the use of American-made steel, manufactured goods, and other construction materials in infrastructure projects funded by the U.S. government. Since taking office, the Biden administration established the Made in America Office (MIAO) to oversee Buy America policies and expanded its scope through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) in 2021. In February of this year, detailed Buy America guidelines and mandates for American-made electric vehicle chargers were announced consecutively.

Yoon Chang-hyun, Director General of Trade Policy at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, said in his opening remarks, "As the U.S. continues to expand the domestic sourcing requirements for materials and components in large-scale infrastructure projects, we plan to closely monitor Buy America-related trends and continuously support our industries’ entry into the U.S. procurement market."

In the following presentations, the Korea Institute of Public Procurement and Policy, KOTRA, and Bae, Kim & Lee LLC analyzed the trends and local responses to Buy America, as well as detailed aspects of the U.S. procurement market and Buy America regulations.

Lee Mi-jung, Director of the Overseas Procurement Research Center at the Korea Institute of Public Procurement and Policy, emphasized, "The U.S. federal government procurement market is the largest market worth approximately $600 billion annually. Despite various challenges, our companies should continue to pay close attention to it."

Yang Eun-young, Head of Regional Trade Investigation at KOTRA, stated, "Due to the expansion of Buy America, concerns among industries in the U.S. are growing. According to a survey by the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), 93% of respondent companies reported difficulties in securing materials."

Jung Ki-chang, attorney at Bae, Kim & Lee LLC, explained, "The U.S. government has introduced various policies to strengthen future domestic manufacturing, and the Buy America regulation is interpreted as an intention to simultaneously foster the traditional manufacturing base."

During the subsequent Q&A session, questions between attending companies and speakers continued, reflecting high interest in U.S. government policies.

Since the revised Buy America announcement in February, the U.S. government has been accepting comments from foreign governments and industries until March 13. Accordingly, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and KOTRA plan to listen to the voices of our industries and collect diverse opinions to submit.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.