South Korea and Japan promise hundreds of billions to the US but most of it may just be loans, not real cash. Turns out investment sometimes means IOUs in a nice suit
South Korea has made it clear: most of the $350 billion it pledged in U.S. investment will be loans and guarantees, not equity. Direct investment makes up less than 5 % of the total fund. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-08-04/korea-expects-less-than-5-of-350-billion-us-fund-as-investment Japan’s negotiator Akazawa added fuel to the skepticism, saying trade agreements with both the U.S. and EU are still not formalized, …