Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

Korea’s annual exports reach new highs in 2024

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) of the Republic of Korea announced on January 1, 2025, that Korea’s annual exports for the year of 2024 amounted to an all-time high USD 683.8 billion, surpassing the previous high of $683.6 billion set in 2022. Daily average exports reached $2.53 billion (up 8.2 percent year-on-year), outperforming the $2.51 billion of 2022. According to World Trade Organization (WTO) statistics, Korea’s global ranking for accumulated exports through January–September 2024 jumped two places to sixth (8th in 2023), posting the steepest export growth rate (9.6 percent) among the world’s top 10 exporting countries. Korea’s imports for 2024 shrank 1.6 percent year-on-year to $632.0 billion amid reduced energy imports. The trade balance stood at a surplus of $51.8 billion (+$62.1 billion year-on-year), the nation’s largest since the record of $69.7 billion surplus in 2018. In 2024, eight out of 15 key export items enjoyed growth. Semiconductors soared 43.9 percent to $141.9 billion, maintaining their upward trajectory for the 14th consecutive month since November 2023 and renewing the record high ($129.2 billion, 2022) in just two years. Notably, despite price falls of general-purpose memory chips in Q4 2024, high value-added items like DDR5s and HBMs led the overall growth and chip exports continued their upward climb throughout the year. All IT items including semiconductors, wireless communication devices, displays, and computers advanced in exports as well, a first in three years since 2021. Exports of automobiles were retained at $70.8 billion (down 0.1 percent) due to partial production setbacks caused by strikes across major automakers and car parts producers, but still managed to enter the $70 billion thresholds for the second consecutive year. Ship exports logged double-digit growth (up 18 percent to $25.6 billion) as high value-added vessels like LNG carriers and large container ships ordered in 2021 were delivered. For petrochemicals, despite unit export price drops from oil price falls in H2 2024, exports rose 5.0 percent on the backs of increased shipments. Bio-health exports hiked 13.1 percent to $15.1 billion in 2024, the growth centering on biosimilars and other pharmaceuticals. With the growing popularity of K-food and K-beauty products worldwide, the export of both agriculture, fishery, and livestock products (up 7.6 percent to $11.7 billion) and cosmetic products (up 20.6 percent to $10.2 billion) entered the $10 billion thresholds for the first time. In 2024, exports to seven out of nine major destinations expanded. To China, semiconductors, petrochemicals, and wireless communication devices showed robust performance, boosting the overall exports 6.6 percent to $133.0 billion. China-bound exports showed growth all throughout the year, with only February and November as exceptions. U.S.-bound exports set historic highs for the seventh consecutive year at $127.8 billion (up 10.5 percent). Automobiles and general machinery drove overall exports, and semiconductors also logged triple-digit growth based on U.S. big tech firms’ wider investments in datacenters. To ASEAN, exports hit $114.0 billion (up 4.5 percent) thanks to the strong growth of semiconductors and petroleum products as well as the double-digit growth of IT items like computers and wireless communication devices. Among all nine major destinations, exports to Latin America ($29.0 billion) recorded the highest growth rate of 17.8 percent. Exports to India (up 4.2 percent to $18.7 billion) came in at an all-time second high and those to the Middle East (up 4.8 percent to $19.7 billion) achieved growth for the fourth consecutive year. Exports to Japan increased 2.0 percent to $29.6 billion. As for the month of December 2024, exports and imports improved 6.6 percent and 3.3 percent to $61.4 billion and $54.9 billi date2025-01-02

Trade Minister chairs foreign investment policy consultation meeting

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong of the Republic of Korea chaired the foreign investment policy consultation meeting on December 26 at the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation (K-SURE) in Seoul with 16 local governments’ foreign investment promotion officers. The meeting was held under an aim to foster organic cooperation between the central and local government bodies to carry forward Korea’s current foreign investment momentum, while also marshalling related organizations’ capabilities to overcome pressing challenges amid persisting geo-economic tensions and global trade uncertainties. At the meeting, attendees discussed foreign investment attraction policies for 2025, recent trade trends and key issues, and local governments’ policy directions and suggestions. date2024-12-27

Trade Minister chairs foreign investment policy consultation meeting with local governments

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong of the Republic of Korea chaired the foreign investment policy consultation meeting today at the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation (K-SURE) in Seoul with 16 local governments’ foreign investment promotion officers. The meeting was held under an aim to foster organic cooperation between the central and local government bodies to carry forward Korea’s current foreign investment momentum, while also marshalling related organizations’ capabilities to overcome pressing challenges amid persisting geo-economic tensions and global trade uncertainties. At the meeting, attendees discussed foreign investment attraction policies for 2025, recent trade trends and key issues, and local governments’ policy directions and suggestions. Trade Minister Cheong noted that this year’s foreign direct investment (FDI) pledges to Korea surpassed an all-time high USD 33 billion despite internal and external uncertainties, highlighting that more foreign investment can be drawn to boost Korea’s national and local economies through combining the central government’s preemptive response capacity and local governments’ local-specific foreign investment promotion strategies. Local government representatives at the meeting agreed on the importance of effective trade countermeasures and foreign investment attraction, expressing commitment to making multifaceted efforts to overcome the domestic and external crises while working closely with the central government through information sharing and consultations on countermeasures. The key points discussed today will be incorporated into establishing the foreign investment policy directions for 2025 and the Government will be giving full measure to increase incentives, improve regulations, and build a business support system so that foreign investment flowing into Korea can go towards strengthening industrial competitiveness and stimulating local economies. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) plans to convene policy consultation meetings with local government bodies on foreign investment and trade issues on at least a semiannual basis to enhance communication between the central and local governments.   date2024-12-26

Korea-Middle East Trade and Industry Cooperation Forum

Deputy Minister for Trade Park Jong-won of the Republic of Korea chaired the Korea-Middle East Trade and Industry Cooperation Forum on December 19 in Seoul with the participation of over 150 attendees composed of related companies, institutions, and diplomatic delegations from eight Middle Eastern countries including the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Oman, and Bahrain. date2024-12-20

Minister Ahn Attends Foreign Investment Strategy Meeting

Minister for Trade, Industry and Energy Dukgeun Ahn of the Republic of Korea chaired a foreign investment strategy meeting on December 19 in Seoul with representatives of the foreign chambers of commerce in Korea and foreign-invested companies. date2024-12-20

Trade Minister attends Korea-Nepal Business Forum

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong of the Republic of Korea attended the Korea-Nepal Business Forum on December 19 in Seoul at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) in Seoul, held on the occasion of Nepalese Minister of Industry, Commerce and Supplies Damodar Bhandari’s visit to Korea. In his congratulatory message, Trade Minister Cheong stated that this year is a prime time to advance the bilateral economic cooperation a step further as it marks the 50th anniversary of the two countries’ establishment of diplomatic ties, proposing that Korea and Nepal step up exchanges for trade and investment expansion as well as the diversification of industrial collaboration based on the TIPF signed that day. date2024-12-20

Minister Ahn chairs foreign investment strategy meeting

Minister for Trade, Industry and Energy Dukgeun Ahn of the Republic of Korea chaired a foreign investment strategy meeting today in Seoul with representatives of the foreign chambers of commerce in Korea and foreign-invested companies. The above representatives expressed their overall confidence in the Korean economy despite the recent political situation and asked for regulatory improvement and increased incentives in line with global standards, as well as measures for minimum negative impact from domestic uncertainties. Noting that this year’s foreign investment pledges recorded USD 33 billion and surpassed the annual investment pledges of 2023 ($32.7 bln), Minister Ahn assessed that high amounts of investment in high-tech and MPE (materials, parts, equipment) industries are especially encouraging. He added that this year’s M&A investments were outdone by greenfield investments, which are known to substantially contribute to production and employment. Moreover, investment growth in manufacturing outpaced that of services, leading to expectations of Korea’s further industrial advancement. The minister highlighted that the Korean economic system is operating stably despite recent internal and external environment changes and that the Government will make effort to nurture a more investor-friendly environment and carry out policy tasks according to plan. He added that the ministry will push stronger foreign investment support and regulatory innovation next year, while boosting communication with foreign-invested companies.   date2024-12-19

Korea and Middle East to keep strengthening trade & industry cooperation network in 2025

Deputy Minister for Trade Park Jong-won of the Republic of Korea chaired the Korea-Middle East Trade and Industry Cooperation Forum (“Forum”) today in Seoul with the participation of over 150 attendees composed of related companies, institutions, and diplomatic delegations from eight Middle Eastern countries including the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Oman, and Bahrain. Middle Eastern countries are showing increased interest in strengthening wide-ranging trade and economic cooperation with Korea for partnership in climate change response and strategic industrial diversification. At the Forum, Deputy Minister Park proposed that both sides make joint effort to facilitate the Korea-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Free Trade Agreement (FTA)’s entry into force next year and emphasized that today’s Forum is held to deepen Korea and Middle Eastern countries’ joint vision for shared growth through mutually beneficial cooperation and to seek measures to further expand and develop this cooperation model. The Forum also included sessions for presentations and discussions on issues such as widening their cooperation network through the Korea-Middle East FTA, stabilizing the energy supply chain, and joint projects in plant construction.   date2024-12-19

MOTIE holds emergency real economy meeting to fully manage domestic & external uncertainties

Minister for Trade, Industry and Energy Dukgeun Ahn of the Republic of Korea chaired the “Public-Private Emergency Strategic Meeting on the Real Economy” at the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) today in Seoul with the participation of the Trade, Industry and Energy Ministry (MOTIE)’s vice ministers and trade minister as well as economic groups and representatives of major industry associations for discussions on measures to effectively respond to internal and external uncertainties amid the recent passing of the impeachment motion against the incumbent president and the upcoming change of the U.S. administration. Minister Ahn highlighted that MOTIE is firmly committed to carrying out trade and industrial policies according to plan to support Korean businesses and respond to uncertainties through public-private joint efforts. He added that a real-time communication system will be established among the Government, relevant associations, and companies to swiftly resolve issues. As for the upcoming inauguration of the new U.S. administration, the minister shared plans to closely communicate with companies with an aim to reinforce mutually beneficial Korea-U.S. relations. In view of the situation, MOTIE will be closely monitoring the real economy and continue to push its ongoing industrial policies such as nurturing high-tech industries and strengthening the supply chain. Moreover, it will make full preparations against unexpected export setbacks by bolstering trade finance resilience, while maintaining efforts to improve regulations and establish a business support system to encourage both proactive and foreign investments. The ministry also plans to monitor domestic energy prices alongside exchange rates, while thoroughly inspecting the energy supply and related facilities’ operations on a daily basis to prevent disruptions. Attendees shared the understanding that establishing a real-time government-industry communication channel is crucial, with industry representatives expressing commitment to engaging in close information exchanges with the Government and consulting on response measures in an effort to make various endeavors to overcome current uncertainties. date2024-12-17

Trade Minister meets Japan’s METI Vice Minister for International Affairs

Korea's Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong held talks with Japan’s Vice Minister for International Affairs at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) Matsuo Takehiko on December 13 in Seoul and discussed bilateral economic and trade cooperation and measures for tangible economic cooperation outcomes. date2024-12-13