Jang Inhwa: "Multilateral Supply Chain Cooperation Must Expand"... 'AI and Supply Chain' Leaders Gather [Gyeongju APEC]

Jang Inhwa: "Strengthening Multilateral Supply Chain Cooperation"
Hancock and Marubeni: "Speed and Boldness Are Key"
Tech and Virtual Asset Leaders Discuss 'Innovation'

Jang Inhwa, Chairman of POSCO Holdings, emphasized the need for multilateral cooperation, stating, "The sustainability of supply chains is a key challenge for the shared prosperity of the Asia-Pacific region." On October 30, at the Hwarang Hall of the Gyeongju Arts Center, during the second day of the 2025 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit, Chairman Jang served as the first speaker in the session themed "Building Resilient and Sustainable Global Supply Chains." He noted that cooperation with Australia is expanding into a multilateral cooperation framework across the Asia-Pacific region, including Japan.

He explained, "POSCO's partnership with Australia began in 1971 with iron ore supply and has since developed into a strategic partnership that now accounts for 70% of POSCO's raw materials." He identified the low-carbon transition of the steel industry, securing supply chains for secondary battery materials, and establishing a clean energy ecosystem as major areas of collaboration.

Jang Inhwa, Chairman of POSCO Holdings, is delivering a speech at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit "Session 10: Building Resilient and Eco-Friendly Global Supply Chains" held on the 30th at the Gyeongju Arts Center in Gyeongbuk. Photo by Kang Jinhyung

In 2010, POSCO participated in the Roy Hill iron ore mining project in Australia alongside Hancock Prospecting from Australia, Marubeni Group from Japan, and China Steel Corporation (CSC). This collaboration has since evolved into a partnership between POSCO and Marubeni for the production of "low-carbon steel raw materials (HBI)" in the Port Hedland region of Australia.

On this day, Gary Korte, CEO of Hancock Prospecting, and Masayuki Omoto, CEO of Marubeni from Japan, also took the stage. They cited speed and boldness as the key factors behind the success of the joint project among the three companies. They further explained that the public and private sectors in each country collaborated simultaneously to establish the supply chain. CEO Masayuki stated, "Cooperation not only among private companies but also between government agencies enabled the success of large-scale projects." He added, "It is important to combine the demand for natural resources from Korea and Japan with Australia's resource development capabilities and to work together to develop global natural resource projects."

They stressed that demand for critical minerals will continue to rise in the future. CEO Korte said, "To stay ahead in a time of change, it is essential to actively leverage technology and partnerships to optimize systems and secure a competitive edge." Chairman Jang also pointed out, "The most important factor is the role of governments."

On the morning of the 30th, at the Gyeongju Arts Center in Gyeongbuk, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit held 'Session 10: Building Resilient and Eco-friendly Global Supply Chains,' where Jang Inhwa, Chairman of POSCO Holdings, is speaking. Photo by Kang Jinhyung

During the second day of the APEC CEO Summit, speeches by representatives from various countries continued, addressing key industrial issues such as supply chains, artificial intelligence (AI), and energy.

In the morning session, leaders of global tech companies delivered their messages. Eric Ebenstein, Head of Public Policy for the Americas at TikTok, emphasized the importance of trust within the digital platform ecosystem. Ebenstein highlighted, "Trust enables users to share content, connect communities, and achieve tangible outcomes." He added, "Last year, TikTok generated 3 billion dollars in economic value in Japan and contributed 24.2 billion dollars to the GDP in the United States." Anthony Cook, Vice President of Microsoft, also stressed that building data centers requires not only power supply but also collaboration across infrastructure provision and network construction.

In the afternoon session, Simon Kahn, Head of Marketing for Asia-Pacific at Google, and Lee Honglak, Head of LG AI Research, are scheduled to speak on the theme of the "Next-Generation AI Roadmap." Hanseung Keum, First Vice Minister of the Ministry of Climate, Environment and Energy, and Jaehoon Chang, Vice Chairman of Hyundai Motor Group, will deliver speeches on "Next-Generation Energy."

Meanwhile, at the same time, the "Future Tech Forum" side event of the CEO Summit was held in the Wonhwa Hall of the Gyeongju Arts Center, featuring a session on virtual assets. Oh Kyungseok, CEO of Dunamu, delivered a keynote speech on "Connecting the Future of Finance," emphasizing that "digital assets are no longer an innovation limited to a specific sector, but serve as a bridge connecting technology and finance, markets and people, regions and economies." In addition, various financial leaders discussed issues in the digital asset industry, such as stablecoins and financial inclusion.

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