![From left: U.S. President Donald Trump and Samsung Electronics Executive Chairman Lee jae-yong [AP/YONHAP, NEWS1]](https://imgnews.pstatic.net/image/640/2025/10/19/0000078425_001_20251019172016063.jpg?type=w860)
U.S. President Donald Trump met with the heads of major conglomerates from Korea, Japan and Taiwan on Saturday at his golf club in Florida, holding informal talks with business leaders from across East Asia while Korea pursues ongoing tariff negotiations with the United States.
The gathering, organized by SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son to mark the 90th birthday of South African golf legend Gary Player, brought together top executives from Korea’s largest companies including Samsung, SK, Hyundai Motor Group, LG and Hanwha.
Samsung Electronics Executive Chairman Lee Jae-yong, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung, LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo and Hanwha Group Vice Chairman Kim Dong-kwan all took part in the event.
President Trump departed from Mar-a-Lago at 9:07 a.m. on Saturday and arrived eight minutes later at Trump International Golf Club, according to the White House press pool. He returned to the resort at 4:59 p.m. after completing the round.
The Korean executives traveled together in a black limousine bus from the airport rather than in individual vehicles. The bus departed the golf club after Trump's party and proceeded to a five-star hotel on Palm Beach Island, where Son was later spotted in the lobby.
It remains unclear who joined Trump’s group for the round, as the White House declined to answer inquiries from the press pool. Access to the golf course was restricted by security.
The meeting coincided with Korea’s ongoing trade and tariff discussions with Washington and provided business leaders with a forum to highlight their companies’ investments in the United States.
Lee, Chung and Kim visited Washington in July to assist with those talks, and Kim has reportedly played a key role in advancing the shipbuilding cooperation initiative dubbed the Make American Shipbuilding Great Again, or MASGA, project.
"Group chairmen enjoyed a round of golf with President Trump and exchanged views on various topics," an industry source said in a phone call with Yonhap News Agency.
U.S. media reported that Trump has now played golf at the Trump International Golf Club 11 times since returning to office. He is scheduled to remain at Mar-a-Lago until Sunday, with plans to return to the White House at around 7 p.m.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
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