A U.S. House Judiciary Committee interim staff report says the South Korean government discriminates against Coupang and other American-owned businesses. The 35-page report, titled “Closed for Competition: Korea’s Discriminatory Attacks on American-owned Businesses,” argues that South Korea’s treatment of U.S. firms conflicts with provisions of a bilateral trade deal signed last year.
The report highlights Coupang as a “consistent target” of Seoul’s scrutiny, pointing in particular to Korean investigations tied to a large data breach involving the company. It characterizes those enforcement and investigative efforts as coercive and overly burdensome, and says they include penalties intended to punish American companies. The committee also links the issue to broader U.S.-South Korea cooperation, arguing that the data-breach matter is being handled in a way that could undermine economic ties even as the two governments cooperate on security and trade.
The sources describe the report as an accusation by the House committee rather than a final finding by a court, and focus on the committee’s view that discriminatory practices exist against foreign companies.
