Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

Korea’s auto exports post double-digit growth in July

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on August 15 that July exports of Korean automobiles grew 11.6 percent to 215,927 vehicles compared to the same period last year. In value terms, outbound shipments increased 21.6 percent to USD 3.8 billion. This expansion in exports was largely attributable to improved sales of sport utility vehicles (SUVs) and eco-friendly cars in North America and the EU.For environment-friendly vehicles, exports jumped 102.3 percent to 25,063 units. These date2019-08-16

Minister Sung meets with reps. of state-run research institutes for materials and parts

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Sung Yun-mo presided over a meeting with the representatives of 11 state-run research institutions for materials and parts at the Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology (KRICT) in Daejeon on Aug 8.    During the meeting, Minister Sung discussed ways to revamp R&D policies in direction to raise local production of key materials and parts and to cut reliance on Japan in the two sectors.    date2019-08-09

Overall retail sales in Korea increase 5% in June

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on July 30 that Korea’s overall retail sales in June grew 5.0 percent compared to the same period last year.Sales of offline retailers inched up 0.7 percent, and those of online retailers advanced 11.7 percent.The Ministry releases monthly retail sales figures based on surveys of 26 major retailers. Half of them are brick-and-mortar retailers: three department store chains, three hypermarket chains, three convenience store chains, and fo date2019-07-30

Korea’s auto exports, production post year-on-year increases in H1

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on July 16 that the Korea’s automobile exports in the first six months of this year rose 2.5 percent year-on-year to 1,246,454 vehicles. In value terms, exports improved 7.0 percent to USD 21.7 billion. This increase is largely attributable to greater demand for eco-friendly cars and sport utility vehicles (SUVs).For green cars, outbound shipments jumped 30.1 percent to 112,093 units mainly due to increased sales in the U.S. and the EU.T date2019-07-16

Vice Minister Cheong reviews Nano-Convergence 2020 Program

Trade, Industry and Energy Vice Minister Cheong Seung-il (center) and Science and ICT Vice Minister Mun Mi-ock (second from the right) attended the presentation of results of the Nano-Convergence 2020 Program held in Suwon, south of Seoul, on June 28.Promoting commercialization of results derived from the public sector’s R&D activities, the Nano-Convergence 2020 program is scheduled to run until 2020 by the Nano-Convergence Foundation (NCF), which was founded in 2012 under the joint su date2019-06-28

Overall retail sales in Korea improve 8% in May

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on June 27 that Korea’s overall retail sales in May saw a year-on-year growth of 8.0 percent as both offline and online retailers experienced sales improvement.Specifically, sales of brick-and-mortar stores inched up 1.9 percent compared to the same period last year, while those of web-based retailers jumped 18.1 percent.The Ministry releases monthly retail sales figures based on surveys of 26 major retailers. Half of them are brick-and- date2019-06-27

Korean universities launch programs to train students in system chip design

Trade, Industry and Energy Vice Minister Cheong Seung-il (center in the front row) visited Seongnam, near Seoul, on June 25 to join the launching ceremony of new university programs aimed at training students to be experts in system semiconductor design.Starting the second semester of this year, 13 universities in Korea will offer 3rd year undergraduate courses related to chip design in existing departments such as electrical engineering. From 2021, these programs are expected to produce more th date2019-06-25

Minister Sung visits 5G-based smart office in Seoul

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Sung Yun-mo, together with Science Minister You Young-min, Education Minister Yoo Eun-hae, and Health Minister Park Neung-hoo, visited a 5G smart office located in Seoul on June 20.During the visit, the Ministers observed demonstrations of various 5G-based technologies such as robot baristas, virtual meetings, and cooperative robots. The presentations were followed by a meeting between the public and private sectors that was held to promote 5G business-to-busi date2019-06-20

Seoul, Stockholm vow to cooperate in bio-health industry

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Sung Yun-mo (third from the right) visited AstraZeneca’s pharmaceutical plant in Södertälje on June 15 (local time) to attend a letter of intent (LOI) signing ceremony for cooperation in the bio-health industry on the occasion of President Moon Jae-in’s state visit to Sweden.The LOI was signed between the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), the Korea Biotechnology Industry Organization (KoreaBio), and AstraZeneca. With the le date2019-06-17

Korea’s auto output, exports in May see year-on-year increases

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on June 13 that the Korea’s automobile production increased 4.1 percent to 366,152 vehicles in May compared to the same period last year.This growth in output was mostly attributable to higher overseas demand and more working days. The local car manufacturers are Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors, GM Korea, Ssangyong Motor, Renault Samsung Motors, Zyle Daewoo Bus, and Tata Daewoo.Exports also improved 6.1 percent year-on-year to 226,096 vehicles date2019-06-13