Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

Exports of Korean ICT goods grow 21.7% to $16.3 billion in January

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on February 10 that Korean exports of information and communications technology (ICT) goods in January expanded 21.7 percent to USD 16.3 billion, the second highest export value for the month of January. Imports of ICT products grew 21.7 percent to $10.7 billion, and the trade balance stood at a surplus of $5.6 billion. Exports of all major items experienced year-on-year increases. Chip exports climbed up 20.5 percent to $8.8 billion and in date2021-02-10

Vice Minister Park encourages petrochemical industry’s commitment to go carbon neutral

Trade, Industry and Energy Vice Minister Park Jin-kyu (second from the left) made a visit to the research site for thermal degradation of waste plastics at SK Institute of Technology Innovation in Daejeon, on February 9, and attended the launching ceremony for the petrochemical industry’s committee on the zero-carbon goal.   Vice Minister Park said that the government will actively support the petrochemical industry’s carbon neutral drive with large-scale R&D projects sinc date2021-02-10

Trade Minister visits logistics site ahead of Lunar New Year holidays

Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee made an on-site visit to Uiwang Inland Container Depot in Uiwang, Gyeonggi Province, on February 8, to encourage logistics workers ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays.   Trade Minister Yoo mentioned that the government will expand and reform the Import-Export Logistics Response Center and put together policy efforts with related industries for the digital transformation of logistics for imports and exports. date2021-02-09

Minister Sung visits hydrogen fuel cell power plant in Seosan

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Sung Yunmo (fourth from the right) made an on-site visit to Daesan Green Energy, a local byproduct hydrogen fuel cell power plant located in Seosan, Chungnam, on February 8, to encourage the leading players working for Korea’s carbon neutral goal.   Korea’s supply of hydrogen fuel cell power amounted to 605MW by the end of 2020, and the country has become the largest fuel cell power generation market, accounting for 43 percent of the total g date2021-02-08

Minister Sung attends MOU signing ceremony for New Deal investment cooperation

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Sung Yunmo attended a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signing ceremony for New Deal investment cooperation in the areas of future cars and industrial digitalization at the Hyundai EV Station in Seoul, on February 4.   The government and private investors including Hyundai Motor Group, the Korea Evaluation Institute of Industrial Technology (KEIT), and the Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology (KIAT) will invest a total of 200 billion won to th date2021-02-04

Trade Minister Yoo meets with foreign investment representatives to discuss FDI policies

Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee (center) attended a New Year meeting hosted by the Korea Foreign Company Association (FORCA) on February 3, and met with representatives from foreign chambers of commerce and investment companies to discuss the 2021 policy direction for foreign direct investments.Trade Minister Yoo mentioned that in line with Korea’s New Deal projects, the government will develop strategies to work together with foreign companies with key technological and human resources in th date2021-02-04

Minister Sung encourages steel industry’s commitment to go carbon neutral

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Sung Yunmo (fourth from the right) attended the launching ceremony for the Green Steel Committee at the Seoul POSCO Center on February 2, and encouraged the steel industry’s announcement of a joint statement to go carbon neutral by 2050. Minister Sung said that the Ministry will support the private sector’s participation in the carbon neutral initiative by establishing a special act to accelerate transition to a carbon neutral industrial structure date2021-02-02

Korea’s January exports expand 11.4% to $48.0 billion

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on February 1 that Korea’s exports in January expanded 11.4 percent from a year earlier to USD 48.0 billion. Imports also went up 3.1 percent to $44.1 billion. The trade balance stood at a surplus of $4.0 billion, staying positive for the 9th consecutive month. Exports in January showed double-digit growth for two months in a row for the first time in 40 months. It is also the third consecutive month in which the total exports and date2021-02-01

Korea to invest 240 billion won in system semiconductor R&D

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Ministry of Science and ICT, and Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced the support measures for the technological innovation in the system semiconductor industry at the Seoul Government Complex on February 1. The Ministries will invest a total of 240 billion won, or USD 215 million, to prominent areas in the system chip industry such as power semiconductors, next generation sensors, and artificial intelligence semiconductors, and foster local fables date2021-02-01

2020 retail sales in Korea expand 5.5% due to strong online sales

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on January 28 that Korea’s retail sales in 2020 expanded 5.5 percent compared to 2019, thanks to strong online sales (up 18.4 percent). Brick-and-mortar sales fell 3.6 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 four SSM operators. The ot date2021-01-28