Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

Foreign direct investment pledged to Korea total $3.2 billion in Q1

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on April 11 that foreign direct investments (FDIs) pledged to Korea in the first quarter of this year decreased 35.7 percent year-on-year to USD 3.2 billion. The FDIs that actually arrived in Korea over the same period declined 15.9 percent to $2.6 billion.Key factors that contributed to the decrease of FDI commitments include a slowdown in global investment flows, a strong base effect, and tax reductions for foreign investors that expired at date2019-04-11

Korea, EU trade chiefs co-chair 8th FTA Trade Committee Meeting in Seoul

Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee (second from the left) and European Commissioner for Trade Cecilia Malmström (right) co-chaired the eighth meeting of the Korea-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA) Trade Committee in Seoul on April 9.On the occasion of this ministerial meeting, the two sides reviewed the implementation of the FTA, discussed bilateral trade issues, and explored ways to respond to global protectionism.The Korean officials and their EU counterparts discussed how to improve mutual market date2019-04-09

Korea’s March exports drop 8.2 percent to $47.1 billion

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on April 1 that Korea’s exports in March decreased 8.2 percent from a year earlier to USD 47.1 billion. Imports fell 6.7 percent to $41.9 billion.The trade balance stood at a surplus of $5.2 billion, remaining positive for 86 straight months. The average daily exports recorded $2.1 billion.The decline in last month’s exports was mainly due to combined effects of external risks and cyclical factors. The former includes the U.S.-Chin date2019-04-01

Korean ICT industry’s exports reach $12.7 billion in February

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on March 21 that Korea’s information and communications technology (ICT) industry in February reached USD 12.7 billion in exports and $7.3 billion in imports. The trade balance stood at a surplus of $5.4 billion.Exports of Korean ICT goods last month saw a year-on-year decrease of 19.0 percent. This fourth consecutive monthly decline is mostly a result of slower exports of semiconductors, displays, and mobile phones.By item, semiconducto date2019-03-21

Trade Minister Yoo meets with Slovak Economy Minister Peter Ziga

Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee (second from the left) had a meeting with Slovakia’s Minister of Economy Peter Ziga (second from the right) in Seoul on March 8.The two ministers discussed a range of issues, including expansion of trade and investment between the two countries. date2019-03-08

New Trade Minister takes office

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy’s new Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee delivered an inaugural speech at her inauguration ceremony held in the Government Complex Sejong on March 5.The ceremony was attended by all members of the Ministry and officials at the director-level or above from the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards (KATS).Trade Minister Yoo’s previous post was Deputy Minister for FTA Negotiations at the Ministry. date2019-03-05

Trade Minister Kim gives speech to government officials at his farewell ceremony in Sejong

Trade Minister Kim Hyun-chong delivered a speech to government officials at his farewell ceremony at the Sejong Government Complex on March 4.Among the attendees at the event were all Ministry officials and senior staff from the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards (KATS).Trade Minister Kim was appointed second vice chief of the National Security Office on February 28. date2019-03-04

Korea’s exports decrease 11.1 percent to $39.6 billion in February

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on March 1 that Korea’s exports in February reached USD 39.6 billion, down 11.1 percent from the same period last year.Imports also went down 12.6 percent to $36.5 billion, but the trade balance recorded $3.1 billion, remaining positive for 85 consecutive months.Last month’s exports fell at a faster rate compared to January’s outbound shipments, which declined 5.9 percent year-on-year. However, average exports per working day date2019-03-01

ICT exports reach $14.5 billion, imports amount to $9.4 billion in January

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on February 21 that Korea’s information and communications technology (ICT) Industry in January totaled USD 14.5 billion in exports and $9.4 billion in imports. The trade surplus stood at $5.1 billion.Outbound shipments of ICT goods last month decreased 18.2 percent compared to the same period of the previous year. This is attributable to declines in exports of semiconductors, displays, and mobile phones.By item, the value of semiconduct date2019-02-21

Trade Minister Kim discusses changing trade conditions with commercial attaches

Trade Minister Kim Hyun-chong (center) discussed changing trade conditions and measures necessary to respond to them with Korean commercial attaches at the Sejong Government Complex on February 13.During the discussion, Trade Minister Kim underscored that protectionism and the Fourth Industrial Revolution are shifting the current global value chains to regional ones and that this places greater importance on the coordination between industry and trade policies. Trade Minister Kim stressed that t date2019-02-13