Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

Korea and China launch 6th FTA Joint Commission meeting

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong of the Republic of Korea and China International Trade Representative and Vice Minister of Commerce Wang Shouwen led their respective delegations for the sixth Korea-China Free Trade Agreement (FTA) Joint Commission (“Commission”) meeting today in Seoul. A follow-up to the Korea-China highest-level talks held this May in Seoul and the summit talks convened this November in Peru, today’s Commission meeting aims to assess the implementation progress of the Korea-China FTA that came into effect in December 2015.  During the meeting, the two sides agreed to accelerate negotiations on services and investment and foster a more predictable business environment. In view of the FTA’s substantial contribution to the two countries’ bilateral trade and investment over the last decade, both sides will keep utilizing the FTA as a major platform for enhancing their mutually beneficial economic cooperation going forward. Moreover, the joint research on Korea-China FTA implementation conducted by the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy (KIEP) and China’s University of International Economics and Trade in commemoration of the upcoming 10th anniversary of the bilateral FTA found that as of 2023, the two countries’ FTA utilization rate reaches 73.3 percent and 85.8 percent for exports and imports, respectively, and that their bilateral trade volume has increased on an average of 4.5 percent per year from 2015 to pre-COVID 2021. The two sides are planning to launch further sessions of the briefing on China’s export controls for Korean companies and the Korea-China supply chain hotline meeting next year to continue cooperation on stabilizing supply chains. date2024-12-09

Korea and China launch 6th FTA Joint Commission meeting

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong of the Republic of Korea and China International Trade Representative and Vice Minister of Commerce Wang Shouwen led their respective delegations for the 6th Korea-China Free Trade Agreement (FTA) Joint Commission meeting today in Seoul. Held as follow-up to the Korea-China highest-level talks (May, Seoul) and summit talks (November, Peru), today’s meeting took stock of the implementation progress of the Korea-China FTA that came into effect in December 2015. date2024-12-09

Trade Minister attends Korea-Sweden Strategic Industry Summit

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong of the Republic of Korea attended the Korea-Sweden Strategic Industry Summit on December 5 in Seoul with the participation of business leaders of both countries. Trade Minister Cheong gave a congratulatory message and took part in the ceremony for the two countries’ signing of 4 MOUs in industrial digital transformation, small modular reactors (SMRs), e-fuel, and green energy areas. date2024-12-06

Minister Ahn attends 61st Trade Day

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Dukgeun Ahn attended the 61st Trade Day on December 5 at COEX in Seoul with Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and KITA Chairman Yoon Jin-sik and took part in the opening button-pressing ceremony. date2024-12-06

Korea-Kyrgyzstan Investment Dialogue

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong and Kyrgyz President Sadyr Zhaparov attended the Korea-Kyrgyzstan Investment Dialogue on December 4 in Seoul with both countries’ government and business representatives present. In his welcome message, Trade Minister Cheong stated that he looks forward to seeing wider cooperation in trade, investment, critical minerals, and renewable energy based on the Trade and Investment Promotion Framework (TIPF) and the energy and critical minerals MOUs signed during the state visit. date2024-12-06

Minister chairs conference with foreign Chambers of Commerce in Korea

Korea’s Minister for Trade, Industry and Energy Dukgeun Ahn and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choi Sang-mok held a conference with representatives of the foreign Chambers of Commerce in Korea on December 6 in Seoul, where Minister Ahn asked for continued support and confidence in the Korean economy and shared plans to maintain close communication with foreign-invested firms to dispel concerns towards Korea’s business environment. date2024-12-06

Korea and Sweden to enhance cooperation in strategic industries

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong of the Republic of Korea attended the Korea-Sweden Strategic Industry Summit (“Summit”) today in Seoul. Co-hosted by the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) and Business Sweden, the Summit was first launched in 2019 following the two countries’ mutual state visits and convenes on an annual basis to promote bilateral economic cooperation. Attending the Summit were approximately 140 business leaders of both countries to engage in presentations and discussions under the following themes: stronger industrial and technological competitiveness; advancing strategic technological collaboration among industries, academia, and research institutions to bolster economic security; and sustainable mobility and energy industries. In his congratulatory address, Trade Minister Cheong stated that Korea is making careful preparations against crisis factors through close monitoring for possible changes across the trade landscape, highlighting the importance of international cooperation in strategic industries. He also expressed anticipation for this Summit to spur synergy over various areas in view of Korea’s designation of special complexes to innovate its high-tech strategic industrial ecosystem and Sweden’s strategic push to boost trade, investment, and global competitiveness. During the Summit opening ceremony, the two countries signed four memorandums of understanding (MOUs) for deeper cooperation in industrial digital transformation, small modular reactors (SMRs), e-fuel, and green energy areas.   date2024-12-05

Korea to build on momentum as rising trade power

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) of the Republic of Korea held the 61st Trade Day today at COEX in Seoul with the participation of over 1,000 attendees composed of government and related institutions’ representatives and recipients of various awards for their contribution to advancing Korea’s trade achievements. Despite high interest rates, high prices, the Russia-Ukraine war, and various other global uncertainties, Korea’s exports snapped the losing streak in October 2023 to overcome related challenges comparatively earlier than other major exporting countries. Carrying the momentum forward, Korea’s exports as of November posted growth for the 14th consecutive month this year and maintained a trade surplus for the 18th consecutive month, logging the highest export growth rate among top exporting nations around the world. Korea’s accumulated exports through this January–November jumped 8.3 percent year-on-year to USD 622.2 billion and the trade balance stood at a surplus of $45.2 billion. Overall, exports contributed to 99 percent of Korea’s economic growth. Semiconductors, the nation’s leading export item, surpassed last year’s annual exports with January–September exports alone and this year’s target is $140 billion. Automobile exports are anticipated to renew annual highs for the second year in a row and ship exports surged 24 percent this year from the tailwind provided by demand for high value-added ships.  By region, exports to Korea’s three major destinations—China, U.S., ASEAN—and emerging markets like Latin America, Middle East, India, and other Global South countries kept up their growth pace, helping to diversify Korea’s export structure. As of this year’s third quarter, the number of exporting SMEs in Korea continually increased to reach an unprecedented 87,000 and e-commerce driven by in-person shopping trends are broadening Korea’s export base with an all-time high export value of $1 billion. On the backs of the global popularity of Hallyu, cosmetic products recorded $9.3 billion in export value as of November, already outperforming their previous highs of $9.2 billion set in 2021, and Korean ramyeon also entered the historic $1 billion export threshold. “K-beauty” and “K-food” products are rising as leading consumer goods, while biosimilars and contract manufacturing organization (CMO) outsourcing are showing potential as the next growth engines.  Moreover, Korea’s defense, plant, and nuclear energy industries have firmly established themselves as fresh drivers of export growth, thanks to the annual average of $15 billion in defense exports, the $7.3 billion Saudi Fadhili gas plant expansion project win, and selection as preferred bidder for the KRW 24 trillion Czech new reactor project. This year marks the 61st anniversary of commemorating Korea’s first $100 million in exports in 1964. At the 61st Trade Day, 597 persons of merit and 1,545 companies were awarded for their contribution to Korea’s trade accomplishments. The following are the key takeaways of this year’s awards trends.  First, Korea’s major export items are going strong regardless of trade conditions. The Gold Tower Orders of Industrial Service Merit went to five companies, including a semiconductor company exporting high bandwidth memory (HBM) chips to a global big tech company based on its accurate prediction of the AI semiconductor market. Another winner is an automaker that helped to dramatically increase U.S.-bound exports by developing an electric vehicle (EV)-specialized model upon securing its local U.S. production base. Second, the K-battery industry has kept up its solid global competitiveness. One of the Bronze Tower Order of Industrial Service Merit winners is a battery exporter that fared well amid th date2024-12-05

Korean gov’t awards 597 persons of merit on 61st Trade Day

The Korean government is launching the 61st Trade Day on December 5 at COEX in Seoul to award persons of merit for contributing to Korea’s trade achievements. This year, a total of 597 persons of merit are to receive government awards, including 33 orders of merit, 31 medals of honor, and 533 commendations. Approximately 89 percent of the awardees work at either SMEs or middle-market companies. The five winners of this year’s Gold Tower Orders of Industrial Service Merit are in businesses specializing in special bolts, semiconductors, automobiles, logistics, and car parts.  The Export Tower Award was first awarded in 1973 to a company for achieving the then-historic USD 100 million in exports. Receiving the prize this year are a total of 1,545 companies, composed of 20 large-sized companies, 92 middle-market companies, and 1,433 SMEs.  The $25 Billion Export Tower Award goes to Kia this year, followed by 55 companies receiving the $100 Million Export Tower Award and 313 more receiving the $1 Million Export Tower Award. Award winners are selected based on the accumulated export value through July 2023–June 2024.   date2024-12-04

32nd Energy Commission meeting

MOTIE Minister Dukgeun Ahn chaired the 32nd Energy Commission meeting on December 3 in Seoul and proposed project tasks in line with the K-grid global market strategy, including AI-driven energy system transition policies.   The meeting was attended by related ministries, academia, and organizations like the Korea NGO's Energy Network (ENET). date2024-12-04