SEOUL, Jan 16 — The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has decided to invest US$30 billion (RM130 billion) in South Korea’s industries, South Korea’s presidential office said yesterday, as the two countries seek to expand economic cooperation.

The investment decision was announced as South Korea’s President Yoon Suk-yeol met his UAE counterpart, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan, in Abu Dhabi during a four-day state visit, Yoon’s office said.

"We have decided a US$30 billion investment based on the trust on South Korea which keeps promises under any circumstances,” Yoon’s office quoted the UAE president as saying.

Details of the investment plan were not immediately known but Yoon’s press secretary, Kim Eun-hye, said in a statement the investment will be directed at nuclear power, defence, hydrogen and solar energy industries, among others.

Seoul’s finance ministry said the US$30 billion investment would be led by sovereign wealth funds, including Mubadala Investment Company.

At their summit, the two countries also signed 13 memorandums of understanding, including an agreement between the state-run Korea Development Bank and the Abu Dhabi state fund Mubadala to cooperate for investment in South Korean companies. — Reuters