Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

FDI to Korea jumps 14.9 percent in Q1, achieving $5.5 billion

The Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy announced on April 7 that foreign direct investments (FDIs) pledged to Korea in the first quarter of this year jumped 14.9 percent year-on-year to USD 5.5 billion, a historic high. The FDIs that actually arrived in Korea over the same period inched down by 2.6 percent to $4.3 billion, still the second highest amount in history. In spite of unstable global investment conditions like the Russia-Ukraine crisis, surging oil prices and raw materials prices date2022-04-08

Korea and U.S. discuss IPEF and Section 232 steel tariffs

Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo held a teleconference with the United States Trade Representative (USTR) Katherine Tai on March 31 to discuss the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) and Section 232 steel tariffs. This is the sixth round of talks held between the two trade chiefs since U.S. President Biden first announced the IPEF last October. With regard to IPEF, Minister Yeo mentioned that multiple discussions are underway across relevant ministries and public-private task forces. He also stat date2022-04-05

March exports grow 18.2%, reaching $63.5 billion

The Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy announced on April 1 that Korea’s exports in March increased 18.2 percent to USD 63.5 billion, the highest in 66 years since 1956, the year trade data was first recorded. This is positive growth for the 17th consecutive month, and double-digit growth for the 13th consecutive month. Average daily exports reached a record-breaking $2.8 billion. In respect of imports, high energy prices and larger purchases of intermediate goods drove up imports b date2022-04-01

MOTIE holds briefing on 57 non-strategic items export control against Russia and Belarus

The Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy announced that export control on 57 non-strategic items against Russia and Belarus will take effect starting March 26. As a responsible member of the international community, Korea has decided to apply sanctions against the two countries at a level similar to those introduced by the U.S. and EU, for which the Ministry has revised the “Public Notice on Trade of Strategic Items” to include 57 non-strategic items on the list of catch-all contr date2022-03-28

Minister Moon meets with future cars investor in France

Trade, Industry, and Energy Minister Moon Sung-wook met with French high-tech auto parts maker Valeo CEO Christophe Périllat in Paris and held a ceremony to commemorate the firm's planned investment of USD 35 million in South Korea. The investment is anticipated to bolster Korea’s future cars technology base and supply chain resilience. Valeo is a major auto parts manufacturer based in France with over 110,000 employees, running 191 production facilities in 33 countries worldwide. date2022-03-25

Korea-U.S. joint briefing for domestic companies on exports regarding sanctions against Russia

The Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy (MOTIE) and the U.S. Department of Commerce (DoC) held an online joint briefing session on March 16 for Korean businesses regarding recent sanctions against Russia and Belarus. This briefing session was held at the request of the Korean government during close negotiations between MOTIE and DoC, and it is a first for the DoC to have held a joint briefing for a country-specific group of companies. The session was held for approximately 90 minutes and date2022-03-21

Korea issues joint statement with WTO denouncing Russia's Ukraine invasion

The Korean government issued a joint statement on March 15 denouncing Russia’s Ukraine invasion along with major WTO member states, including the U.S. EU, Japan, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the UK. The joint statement is titled, “Joint statement on aggression by the Russian Federation against Ukraine with the support of Belarus” and states the following: - “We, WTO Members…(omitted)…are united in condemning in the strongest possible terms the Russi date2022-03-18

Korea's automobile export value grows 9.1% in February

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on March 16 that Korea’s automobile industry in February increased in exports and production, while domestic sales sank compared to the same period of previous year. Total auto output in February rose 1.2 percent to 263,959 units. Despite prolonged automotive semiconductor shortages, efforts on part of finished carmakers and completion of production facilities have driven production, domestic sales and exports to recover pre-COVID perfo date2022-03-16

ICT exports achieve 23.7% growth to $18.9 billion in February

The Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy announced on March 15 that outbound shipments of Korea’s information and communications technology (ICT) goods in February reached an all-time high of USD 18.9 billion, recording a year-on-year growth of 23.7 percent. Imports of ICT products climbed 23.9 percent to $11.4 billion, and the trade surplus in this sector stands at an estimated $7.5 billion. Exports of all major items experienced growth except for mobile phones. Outbound shipments o date2022-03-15

Trade Minister holds Public-Private Russia Trade and Investment Countermeasures Meeting

Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo held an emergency Public-Private Russia Trade and Investment Countermeasures Meeting at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) in Seoul on March 3 to address the Russian government’s announcement of 48 “unfriendly” countries list and related repercussions.   Minister Yeo gave an opening message stating that “Korea, as a responsible member of the international community, has decided to partake in the sanctions against Russia, as date2022-03-11