On August 7, 2026, South Korea's JoongAng Ilbo reported, "Against the backdrop of the US-China confrontation, the United States and Europe are making moves to exclude China from the supply chains of major industries, but precisely now is a good opportunity (golden time) for South Korean manufacturing to restore its competitiveness."

As a result of comparing the competitiveness of 5 major export categories (semiconductors, automobiles, machinery, steel, and chemical industry) in 2019 and 2024 by the Korea International Trade Association, South Korea's competitiveness fell below that of China in four fields, excluding semiconductors. Although it has been pointed out that "considering China's production scale and technological level, it is difficult to say that South Korea has an advantage in most manufacturing industries," experts are reportedly unanimous in saying, "Now is the chance."

Ji Man-su, a research fellow at the Korea Institute of Finance, stated, "There is no need to surpass China in all fields," and pointed out, "It is important to establish a position where Korean products are chosen as an alternative to Chinese products." He indicated that this is possible in industries closely related to national security and supply chains, such as shipbuilding, defense, automobiles, batteries, and power equipment.

Furthermore, he suggested that South Korea should take this opportunity to shift from the general-purpose product market dominated by China to high value-added and specialized fields. In particular, he stated that it is necessary to strengthen the competitiveness and supply chains in the materials, parts, and equipment sectors, where dependence on China is increasing, and to jointly promote the development of artificial intelligence (AI) and robot platforms that can be utilized across the entire manufacturing industry, as well as low-carbon production technologies, through public-private cooperation.

The article also introduced the view that the manufacturing industry should be viewed not only from the profitability of individual companies but also from the perspective of national security. Shipbuilding, electricity, steel, telecommunications, and the defense industry are not merely export industries but are fundamental industries that support national functions. Especially in South Korea, which relies on overseas sources for major resources such as crude oil and iron ore, if maritime logistics are disrupted, industrial activities and national life will be directly impacted. While Europe, the US, Japan, and China position shipbuilding and shipping as national security and supply chain industries and are promoting industrial reconstruction led by their governments, the article warned that South Korea still tends to view them from a commercial perspective.

Many comments were received from South Korean netizens criticizing technology leakage, such as, "Technology leakage is an act of treason and espionage. It should be severely punished," "Traitors who sell technology to foreign countries even in such a situation must be thoroughly punished," "Those who leak technology should have their nationality revoked and be banned from entering the country," and "The treatment of engineers should be improved. First, we must consider what the problem is."

In addition, voices expressing concern were also seen, saying, "The reason Japan can remain robust even when pushed by South Korea and China in various industries is because it has strengths in materials, parts, equipment, and precision processing that underpin industries, which other countries do not possess. South Korea lacks these." (Translation and editing / Asa-e)