[Anchor]

With changes expected in U.S. economic policies depending on the election results, a significant impact is anticipated for South Korea's economy as well. In particular, the semiconductor industry, the core of South Korean exports, is pointed out as the biggest variable.

Reporter Yoo Soo-Hwan examines the expected changes.

[Reporter]

The KOSPI, which started the morning with an upward trend at 9:00 AM, took a nosedive around 10:00 AM upon news projecting a landslide victory for the Democratic Party.

After plunging more than 4% at one point, it rebounded around 12:30 PM as President Trump conceded defeat, managing to defend the 5,600 mark.

As changes in the political landscape of the U.S. Congress are expected to bring shifts in economic policy, uncertainty for South Korea's economy is likely to persist for a while.

In particular, a major variable has emerged for the semiconductor industry.

This is because the Democratic Party has argued for regulations, claiming that the construction of AI data centers harms the environment and increases the burden on residents through massive consumption of electricity and water.

[Jung Yong-taek / Researcher, IBK Securities: The Democratic Party candidate explicitly pledged during the election that data center projects could be put on hold or canceled. There are concerns that disruptions in production and construction could affect South Korea.]

Uncertainty has also been added to the South Korean government's 350 billion dollar investment in the United States.

The Texas gas-fired combined cycle power plant, the first project for investment in the U.S., relies on electricity demand from AI data centers. However, with a Democratic governor elected in Texas for the first time in 36 years, its future has become uncertain.

Although the power of Congress to check President Trump has grown, the possibility of tariff pressures decreasing anytime soon is assessed to be low.

[Seok Byung-hoon / Professor of Economics, Ewha Womans University: Even during the past Biden administration, the tariffs raised during the first Trump administration were not lowered. Tariffs have already settled in as a means to cover the U.S. fiscal deficit.]

On the other hand, the possibility that interest rates and exchange rates could stabilize as a brake is put on the fiscal spending pursued by the Trump administration is viewed as a potential help to South Korean companies.

(Video editing: Kim Jong-mi, VJ: Lee Ji-hwan)