Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

Minister Moon meets ASML CEO

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Moon Sungwook (right) met with ASML CEO Peter Wennink at ASML Korea’s headquarters in Hwaseong, on November 18, to discuss cooperative measures in the semiconductor sector with the global manufacturer of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography equipment.   ASML has announced its plans to invest KRW 240 billion (USD 229 million) in the Hwaseong semiconductor cluster, and the two sides agreed for a stronger cooperation for a stable supply of materials date2021-11-19

Korea’s automobile industry sees decreases in October due to automotive chip shortage

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on November 18 that automobile output, domestic sales, and exports decreased 21.6 percent, 21.4 percent, and 18.1 percent, respectively, for the month of October. Despite the expectation that the global automotive chip shortage would ease in the third quarter, the supply from Southeast Asia was delayed, leading to cuts in production and exports. The number of vehicles produced by Korean carmakers in October lost 21.6 percent to 263,723 units date2021-11-18

MOTIE announces R&D strategy for carbon neutrality in industry, energy sectors

The Trade, Industry and Energy Ministry announced a plan to increase R&D investment for the goal of carbon neutrality at the second meeting of the “Carbon Neutral Industrial Transformation Committee”, on November 17, held at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry.   The Ministry will increase the R&D investment for carbon neutrality from KRW 0.8 trillion to KRW 1.2 trillion (USD 1.0 billion) and spend 30 percent of the Ministry’s R&D budget toward carbon date2021-11-17

Minister Moon visits site of urea solution production amid supply shortage

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Moon Sungwook (second from the left) made an on-site visit to the plant of Lotte Fine Chemical Co., a local producer of urea solution, in Ulsan, on November 15, to check the situation at the production site amid the recent supply shortage.   Minister Moon mentioned that thanks to the collaborative effort between the government and the private sector, the inspection process by China on 18,700 tons of urea export to Korea is under progress.   Moon date2021-11-16

Exports of Korea’s ICT goods expand for 17 consecutive months

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on November 11 that exports of Korea’s information and communications technology (ICT) products recorded growth for the 17th consecutive month in October, rising 21.5 percent to $19.9 billion.   Imports gained 18.5 percent to $12.1 billion, and the trade balance stood at a surplus of $7.8 billion.   Exports of all major ICT products advanced.   Chip exports saw a year-on-year rise of 28.4 percent to $11.2 billion, ex date2021-11-11

Korea, U.S. agree to launch cooperation platform for carbon neutrality targets

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Moon Sungwook (right) met with United States Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm in Washington D.C. on November 10 (local time), and the two sides agreed to launch the Energy Policy Dialogue (EPD), a ministerial level talk aimed at strengthening partnership in the energy sector.   Through the EPD, the two countries will join efforts across three pillars – policies and planning, technologies and research, and commercialization and deployment &nda date2021-11-11

Korea's IP trade balance in the black for the first time

  date2021-11-10

Minister Moon meets U.S. Commerce Secretary

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Moon Sungwook (right) met with United States Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo during his visit to Washington D.C. on November 9 (local time), and discussed ways to accelerate industrial cooperation between the two countries.   The two sides agreed to expand the current director-level bilateral dialogue for industrial cooperation to a ministerial talk, and join efforts to provide support for Korean firms investing in the U.S.   Minister Moon al date2021-11-10

Korea, Chile vow to enhance hydrogen sector cooperation

Trade, Industry and Energy Vice Minister Park Kiyoung (left) met with Chilean Minister for Energy and Mining Juan Carlos Jobet in Seoul, on November 9, and the two countries signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) aimed at expanding cooperation in the hydrogen sector, exchanging technologies and developing business opportunities.   It is expected that Chile’s renewable energy resources and Korea’s hydrogen utilization and distribution technologies combined together would en date2021-11-09

Minister Moon encourages creation of high value-added local jobs in Daegu

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Moon Sungwook encouraged the decision by Daedong, a local manufacturer of agricultural machinery, and its subsidiary company Daedong Mobility to invest 181.4 billion won (USD 154 million) and create 302 new jobs over the next five years in Daegu.   The project follows a technological cooperation between Daedong and KT, a leading IT company, and is expected to create high value-added industries involving AI-based mobile robots and e-bikes for delivery, s date2021-11-01