Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

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

Trade Minister attends DEPA Ministerial Meeting

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong attended the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement (DEPA) Ministerial Meeting on May 15 at ICC Jeju held on the sidelines of the 2025 APEC MRT Meeting and discussed key agendas including other countries’ accession to DEPA. date2025-05-15

Trade Minister meets Malaysia’s Minister of Investment, Trade, and Industry

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong met with Malaysia’s Minister of Investment, Trade, and Industry Datuk Seri Utama Tengku Zafrul Aziz on May 15 at ICC Jeju on the occasion of the 2025 APEC MRT Meeting and discussed bilateral trade issues including the progress on the Korea-Malaysia FTA negotiations. date2025-05-15

Trade Minister meets Assistant Minister of Chinese Ministry of Commerce

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong met with Assistant Minister Li Chenggang of the Chinese Ministry of Commerce on May 15 at ICC Jeju on the occasion of the 2025 APEC MRT Meeting and discussed bilateral economic cooperation and trade issues including negotiations on the service and investment sectors of the Korea-China FTA. date2025-05-15

Trade Minister meets Philippine Trade and Industry Secretary

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong held bilateral talks with Philippine Trade and Industry Secretary Maria Cristina Aldeguer-Roque on May 14 at ICC Jeju on the occasion of the 2025 APEC MRT Meeting and discussed APEC outcomes and measures to invigorate Korea-Philippine trade and investment. date2025-05-15

Trade Minister attends 1st ASEAN-ROK Think-tank Dialogue on Economic and Trade Policy

Korea’s Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong attended the first ASEAN-ROK Think-tank Dialogue on Economic and Trade Policy (AKTD) on May 14 on Jeju Island, held with the participation of approximately 100 representatives from Korean and ASEAN major think tanks, the ASEAN Secretariat, Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA), the Asia Foundation, Yonsei University, and the Korea-Southeast Asia Policy Cooperation Center. date2025-05-15

Minister Ahn attends 2025 Osaka-Kansai World Expo

Korea’s Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Dukgeun Ahn attended the “Korea Day” events at the 2025 Osaka-Kansai World Expo on May 13 with both governments’ delegations and business leaders, where he gave an opening address and visited the Korea Pavilion and other major exhibition booths.  date2025-05-15

Global trade leaders gather on Jeju Island for 2025 APEC MRT Meeting

Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) is holding the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Ministers Responsible for Trade (MRT) meeting from May 15–16 at the International Convention Center Jeju (ICC Jeju). As Korea is resuming APEC chairmanship in 20 years since 2005, Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong is chairing the MRT meeting with the participation of trade ministers from 21 major economies in the Asia-Pacific region, including Australia, Canada, Chile, China, Japan, and the U.S., as well as the WTO Director-General and the OECD Deputy Secretary-General. Amid the rapidly shifting global trade environment, this year’s APEC MRT meeting is the trade ministers’ first official gathering for multilateral cooperation. Discussions will cover various trade issues and intraregional cooperation measures, such as the liberalization and facilitation of trade and investment. In line with the 2025 APEC theme of “Building a Sustainable Tomorrow: Connect, Innovate, Prosper,” the MRT meeting consists of three sessions on the following topics: AI innovation for trade facilitation, connection through multilateral trade, and prosperity through sustainable trade.  In the first session, participants address wide-ranging measures for cooperation to catalyze AI utilization in trade areas such as AI application and standard information sharing in the field of tariffs and customs, with OECD Deputy Secretary-General Yoshiki Takeuchi as the keynote speaker. The second session focuses on WTO reform and role of APEC in restoring the multilateral trade system, with WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala speaking on WTO reform and future cooperation for multilateral trade. The last session on prosperity through sustainable trade, to convene on May 16, will have participants exchange views on measures for joint efforts in establishing a sustainable supply chain, including climate crisis response. In his opening message, Trade Minister Cheong noted the current difficult external environment surrounding APEC and stated that the need for APEC is greater than ever considering the severe global trade situation. He further expressed hope that this MRT meeting will serve as a platform for communication and cooperation that contributes to resolving political and economic tensions and uncertainties that the world is facing today.   date2025-05-15

Korean culture and technology capture global attention at 2025 Osaka-Kansai World Expo

Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE), Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism (MCST), Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs (MAFRA), and the Korea Heritage Service (KHS) announced that the five-day Korea Week (May 13–17) takes off today at 2025 Osaka-Kansai World Expo, starting with Korea Day. Approximately 350 visitors attended the Korea Day event launched today, including a total of 30 government officials and business leaders of both countries. The Korea Day event consisted of a series of programs celebrating the history of Korea-Japan exchanges, kicking off with a reenactment of the Joseon Tongsinsa procession commemorating the port entry of the ship that carried diplomatic envoys from the Joseon Dynasty into Osaka. The Joseon Tongsinsa was the Joseon Dynasty’s delegation for bilateral exchanges in the 17–19th century, and related archives have been jointly registered by the two countries on the UNESCO Memory of the World Register in 2017. The Korea-Japan government officials and business leaders also visited the Japan Pavilion and Korea Pavilion. With the theme “Between Lives,” the Japan Pavilion consists of a Plant Area, Farm Area, and Factory Area showcasing the utilization of Japan’s cutting-edge technology in waste decomposition, recycling, and circular economy. The Korea Pavilion was themed “With Hearts,” expressing the harmony of advanced technology and culture through AI, hydrogen fuel cells, and K-Pop to illustrate environmental recovery and intergenerational connection. Since its opening on April 13, the Korea Pavilion has drawn roughly 350,000 visitors and is rated as one of the most popular national pavilions at the Expo. Next, the government and business leaders attended major sideline events like the Korea Tourism Festa and K-Food Fair. A booth was also set up to promote top Korean products with the participation of 90 Korean firms and 160 Japanese buyer companies in the form of B2B and B2C marketing exhibition, displaying a wide range of cosmetics and daily necessities produced by Korean SMEs as well as IT home appliances and mobility products of Samsung Electronics and Hyundai Motor, providing visitors the opportunity to use and experience the various products firsthand. MOTIE Minister Dukgeun Ahn stated that global interest in the Korean lifestyle and culture is leading to preference for Korean products and technology, creating a virtuous cycle. He added that utmost efforts will be made to achieve synergy based on the Expo experience so that Korea’s strengths in these diverse areas can translate into competitiveness at the national level. Held as the last official program, the Korea-Japan Friendship Dinner was attended by around 100 key figures of both countries to wish success for the 2025 Osaka-Kansai World Expo.   date2025-05-13

Korea-Saudi Business and Investment Forum

Korea’s Deputy Minister for Trade Park Jong-won attended the Korea-Saudi Business and Investment Forum on May 9 in Seoul and gave a congratulatory address to approximately 250 participants composed of Korean and Saudi government officials and related institutions. date2025-05-12