Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

Korea and Africa hold Trade and Industry Cooperation Forum 2024

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) of the Republic of Korea held the Korea-Africa Trade and Industry Cooperation Forum 2024 (“Forum”) today at the Trade Tower in Seoul, the first large-scale economic cooperation event for the two sides following the Korea-Africa Summit 2024 in June, which was the first and largest multilateral summit meeting between Korea and Africa. The Forum convened with the participation of roughly 200 persons including Korea’s Deputy Minister for Trade Park Jong-won, Moroccan Ambassador to Korea Chafik Rachadi, ambassador-level figures of 12 African countries, business leaders, and related experts. The Forum consisted of keynote presentation sessions, panel discussions, and one-on-one consultations.   In his congratulatory message, Deputy Minister Park stated that the Korea-Africa Summit 2024 is an invaluable culmination of Korea and Africa’s joint efforts and highlighted the importance of concretizing and developing its outcomes. Along this vein, he shared plans to actively support measures for implementation and new joint project discovery through platforms like the Public-Private Committee for Korea-Africa Economic Cooperation, while also reinforcing the institutional basis for economic cooperation via schemes such as the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) and the Trade and Investment Promotion Framework (TIPF).   During the first presentation session, the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy (KIEP) and the European-African Institute at Hanyang University covered the economic value of the Korea-Africa Summit 2024, current bilateral cooperation, and promising future collaboration areas. In the second session, the Institute of African Knowledge Sharing and DR & AJU Law Group LLC briefed the audience on key factors of consideration in entering the African market such as Africa’s legal system and business culture. After the Forum, Korean companies engaged in one-on-one consultations where they sought advice on business issues of interest. date2024-11-19

Trade Minister attends APEC Ministerial Meeting AMM

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong of the Republic of Korea attended the 35th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Ministerial Meeting (AMM) Session 3 on November 14 in Lima, Peru, where he emphasized the need for global solidarity amid the uncertain economic environment and proposed measures to maintain the WTO-centered multilateral trade system and realize the FTAAP. date2024-11-18

Groundbreaking ceremony of JSR Corporation’s metal oxide resist plant

Deputy Minister for Trade and Investment Kim Dae-ja of the Republic of Korea attended the groundbreaking ceremony of Japanese company JSR Corporation’s metal oxide resist (MOR) production plant on November 12 in Ochang, North Chungcheong Province. date2024-11-13

JSR Corporation to establish EUV metal oxide resist production base in Korea

Deputy Minister for Trade and Investment Kim Dae-ja of the Republic of Korea attended the groundbreaking ceremony of Japanese company JSR Corporation’s metal oxide resist (MOR) production plant today in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province. Established in 1957, JSR Corporation is a world-leading semiconductor photoresist manufacturer, and has been steadily increasing investment in Korea since building its display materials plant in Ochang in 2003. Today’s groundbreaking ceremony makes JSR Corporation the first company in the world to establish a production base in Korea to manufacture metal oxide resists for extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUV) processing. Capable of replacing low-end chemically amplified resists, EUV metal oxide resists play a key role in securing competitiveness in ultra-fine processes, on which major chip producers are concentrating all their effort. JSR Corporation plans to complete the plant construction and begin mass-producing metal oxide resists by 2026, through which Korea expects to better meet domestic demand and boost its semiconductor industry competitiveness.    date2024-11-12

Trade Minister chairs 41st Trade Promotion Committee meeting

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong of the Republic of Korea chaired the 41st Trade Promotion Committee meeting today in Seoul with the participation of relevant ministries, focusing on ways to stably manage Korea-U.S. trade issues in view of the U.S.’ recent presidential election results and future policy shift prospects. date2024-11-11

MOTIE holds 41st Trade Promotion Committee meeting

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong of the Republic of Korea chaired the 41st Trade Promotion Committee meeting today in Seoul with the participation of relevant ministries, focusing on ways to stably manage Korea-U.S. trade issues in view of the U.S.’ recent presidential election results and future policy shift prospects. In his opening message, Trade Minister Cheong noted that it is most important to take stock of pending Korea-U.S. trade issues and seek response measures, for which he asked the cooperation of related ministries.  Moreover, he emphasized that whole-of-the-government efforts will be made to ease uncertainties for Korean businesses and ensure that the two countries’ mutually beneficial trade relations continue.   date2024-11-11

Trade Minister Cheong chairs conference with U.S.-invested firms to discuss public-private cooperation

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong of the Republic of Korea held a conference today in Seoul with Korean businesses investing in the U.S. to take stock of the post-election investment situation and future public-private joint outreach measures. The conference was attended by representatives of major U.S.-invested companies specializing in semiconductors, electronics, automobiles, battery, renewable energy, and materials chemistry areas. Attendees discussed the future impact on U.S.-invested domestic companies in view of election results, sharing the understanding that public and private sectors need to cooperate to respond effectively to market changes. Trade Minister Cheong stated that the ministry plans to establish a system for close cooperation with industries to share relevant information and ensure timely consultations with the incoming U.S. administration and key industry figures. MOTIE intends to hold relay meetings per each industry to maintain public-private communication and stable trade relations.   date2024-11-08

Trade Minister Cheong chairs conference with U.S.-invested firms

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong of the Republic of Korea held a conference today in Seoul with Korean businesses investing in the U.S. to take stock of the post-election investment situation and future public-private joint outreach measures. The conference was attended by representatives of major U.S.-invested companies specializing in semiconductors, electronics, automobiles, battery, renewable energy, and materials chemistry areas including Hyundai Motor, LG Energy Solution, SK On, and Samsung SDI. date2024-11-08

Minister Ahn gives congratulatory message at Invest KOREA Summit 2024

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Ahn attended the Invest KOREA Summit 2024 today in Seoul with the participation of foreign investors, companies from home and abroad, the chambers of commerce in Korea, embassies to Korea, and local government bodies, who will be taking part in various IKS programs such as the investment declaration ceremony, Invest KOREA (IK) Conference, investor consultations, local governments’ town hall meetings, startup forums, and a foreign media press conference. Minister Ahn gave a congratulatory message, emphasizing commitment to policy efforts to nurture Korea into a high-tech global business hub through stronger advanced industrial capacity, technology and talent innovation, trade landscape stability, and regulatory upheaval. date2024-11-06

Global regional HQ designation ceremony

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Dukgeun Ahn attended the global regional HQ designation ceremony with Hewlett Packard and Vestas’ representatives today in Seoul. date2024-11-06