Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

Deputy Trade Minister meets Chile’s Undersecretary for International Economic Relations

Korea’s Deputy Minister for Trade Park Jong-won met with Claudia Sanhueza Riveros, Chile’s Undersecretary for International Economic Relations, on May 16 at ICC Jeju on the occasion of the 2025 APEC MRT Meeting and discussed progress on the Korea-Chile FTA upgrade negotiations. date2025-05-19

Deputy Minister for Trade meets Canada’s Special Envoy for the Indo-Pacific

Korea’s Deputy Minister for Trade Park Jong-won met with Ian McKay, Canada’s Special Envoy for the Indo-Pacific and Ambassador to Japan on May 16 at ICC Jeju on the occasion of the 2025 APEC MRT Meeting and discussed bilateral trade and investment cooperation. date2025-05-19

Trade Minister Cheong meets with Japan's METI & MOFA vice ministers

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong met with Masaki Okushi, Vice Minister of Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), and Miyaji Takuma, Vice Minister of Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), on May 16 at ICC Jeju on the occasion of the 2025 APEC MRT Meeting and discussed multilateral trade cooperation and Korea-Japan economic cooperation. date2025-05-19

Korea strengthens cooperation with Asia-Pacific economies to address global trade uncertainties

Korea’s Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) held high-level bilateral talks with trade representatives of 14 APEC member economies and the World Trade Organization (WTO) through May 14-16 on Jeju Island, as part of a series of bilateral meetings convened on the sidelines of the 2025 APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade (MRT) Meeting. During the talks, he took stock of the recent developments in U.S. tariff consultations with major economies and discussed measures to enhance trade and economic cooperation in addressing global trade uncertainties. First, Trade Minister Cheong met with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on May 15 to discuss the status of U.S. tariff consultations with major economies and to exchange views on the Korea-U.S. technical discussions launched on May 1. Representative Greer noted Korea’s efforts to deliver meaningful outcomes through this year’s APEC MRT Meeting as chair of APEC 2025. On May 16, Trade Minister Cheong held a meeting with Masaki Okushi, Vice Minister of Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), and Miyaji Takuma, Vice Minister of Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA). Commemorating the 60th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations, the two sides agreed to deepen collaboration in key areas like advanced industries, hydrogen and other emerging energy sectors, and supply chain resilience. They also pledged to work together toward the success of APEC 2025 and the Osaka-Kansai Expo and to actively leverage both Korea-Japan and Korea-U.S.-Japan cooperation platforms. In the meeting with Budi Santoso, Indonesia’s Minister of Trade, Trade Minister Cheong emphasized that more than 2,000 Korean companies are currently operating in Indonesia, requesting the Indonesian government’s support in resolving challenges faced by Korean firms including local certification and import restriction issues so as to ensure stable business operations. Meanwhile, Korea’s Deputy Minister for Trade Park Jong-won met with Ian McKay, Canada’s Special Envoy for the Indo-Pacific and Ambassador to Japan, to discuss ways to expand Korea-Canada cooperation in celebration of the 10th anniversary of the two countries’ bilateral FTA and to address support for Korean companies operating in Canada. He also met with Claudia Sanhueza Riveros, Chile’s Undersecretary for International Economic Relations, to review progress on the Korea-Chile FTA upgrade negotiations and to request the Chilean government’s support for Korean companies seeking to participate in Chile’s lithium development projects. Trade Minister Cheong stated that the bilateral talks with 14 Asia-Pacific economies’ trade leaders and the WTO Director-General have helped to promote the sharing of insights on global developments and trade response measures, while also advancing close cooperation on key issues such as building resilient critical minerals supply chains, expanding trade networks, and addressing challenges faced by Korean companies operating overseas. He added that the ministry will strive to mitigate trade uncertainties and external risks based on the newly gained insights and strengthened intraregional cooperation.   date2025-05-19

Minister meets WTO Director-General

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Dukgeun Ahn met with WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala on May 16 in Seoul and discussed issues on the global trade and economic environment, the importance of multilateral trade, and cooperation with the WTO. date2025-05-19

Trade Minister meets Indonesian Minister for Trade

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong met with Indonesian Minister for Trade Budi Santoso on May 16 at ICC Jeju on the occasion of the 2025 APEC MRT Meeting and discussed APEC outcomes and WTO reform measures. date2025-05-19

Trade Minister meets U.S. Trade Representative

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong met with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on May 15 at ICC Jeju on the occasion of the 2025 APEC MRT Meeting and discussed bilateral trade issues. Representative Greer noted Korea’s efforts to create meaningful outcomes through the APEC MRT Meeting as this year’s APEC chair. date2025-05-19

Trade Minister meets WTO Director-General

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong met with WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala on May 15 at ICC Jeju on the occasion of the 2025 APEC MRT Meeting and discussed issues on the WTO reform and multilateral trade system. date2025-05-19

2025 APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade Joint Statement

2025 APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade Joint Statement Jeju, Republic of Korea | 15-16 May 2025   1. We, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Ministers Responsible for Trade (MRT), met in Jeju, Republic of Korea, from 15-16 May 2025, under the chairmanship of H.E. Inkyo Cheong, Minister of Trade of the Republic of Korea. We welcome the participation of the Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Deputy Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council (PECC).   2. Taking inspiration from Korea's APEC 2025 theme "Building a Sustainable Tomorrow", we have advanced APEC’s agenda through three thematic priorities: Connectivity through Multilateral Trading System, Artificial Intelligence (AI) Innovation for Trade Facilitation, and Prosperity through Sustainable Trade.   3. We remain committed to the Putrajaya Vision 2040, including through the implementation of the Aotearoa Plan of Action to build an open, dynamic, resilient, and peaceful Asia-Pacific community for the prosperity of all our people and future generations. We are concerned with the fundamental challenges faced by the global trading system. We remain committed to APEC as the premier forum for regional economic cooperation and emphasize the importance of its role in bringing us together to address the economic challenges facing our region and create a more resilient and prosperous Asia-Pacific region.   4. We recognize the importance of the WTO to advance trade issues, and acknowledge the agreed upon rules in the WTO as an integral part of the global trading system. We recognize the WTO has challenges and needs meaningful, necessary, and comprehensive reform to improve all its functions, through innovative approaches, to be more relevant and responsive in light of today’s realities.   5. We welcome the acceptance by 16 APEC economies of the WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies, and call on remaining economies to complete their domestic procedures, and encourage all WTO Members to conclude negotiations on additional disciplines as soon as possible. We recognize the need for a constructive engagement on agriculture at the WTO. We also note the extension of the moratorium on customs duties on electronic transmissions as decided at MC13. We note the importance of enhancing predictability for the development of the digital economy. We welcome efforts to continue to reinvigorate work under the Work Program on Electronic Commerce.   6. We recognize the positive role of plurilateral negotiations at the WTO, including the Joint Statement Initiatives (JSIs), for advancing issues of interest to Members and to make the WTO more relevant. We welcome the progress made and emphasize their roles to address contemporary trade issues, foster new ideas, facilitate economic growth, and build momentum toward multilateral outcomes. We note the efforts of participating Members of the WTO JSIs to incorporate the Investment Facilitation for Development Agreement and the Agreement on Electronic Commerce into the WTO legal framework. We note the Statement of the APEC Committee on Trade and Investment together with the APEC Investment Experts’ Group Supporting the Investment Facilitation for Development Agreement, which reaffirms APEC’s strong commitment to a more transparent, predictable and business-friendly investment environment.   7. Recognizing its importance to APEC, we reaffirm our shared commitment to advancing economic integration in the Asia-Pacific region in a manner that is market-driven, including through the work on Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP) agenda. We welcome the study conducted by the APEC Policy Support Unit (PSU) on areas of convergence an date2025-05-19

Trade Minister attends 2025 APEC MRT Meeting opening ceremony

Korea’s Trade Minister Inkyo Cheong attended the opening ceremony of the 2025 APEC MRT Meeting on May 15 at ICC Jeju with the participation of 21 major Asia-Pacific member economies’ trade ministers and the WTO Director-General and the OECD Deputy Secretary-General, where he gave an opening address and took part in discussions on the liberalization and facilitation of trade and investment among other trade issues and intraregional cooperation measures. date2025-05-15