Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

Trade Minister visits Thermo Fisher Scientific Korea

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong met Thermo Fisher Scientific SVP Mark Smedley on March 28 at Thermo Fisher Scientific Korea in Seoul and received a briefing on company management issues and discussed prospects of investment in establishing a raw and subsidiary biomaterials production facility in Korea, as well as battery and chip cooperation. date2024-03-29

Korea and Thailand declare negotiation launch for bilateral EPA

Deputy Minister for FTA Negotiations Roh Keon-ki met Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce Phumtham Wechayachai on March 28 in Bangkok to declare the launch of negotiations for the Korea-Thailand Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA). date2024-03-29

Trade Minister meets Cambodia’s Acting Minister of Commerce

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong met with Cambodia’s Acting Minister of Commerce and Secretary of State Kem Sithan on March 27 in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, to discuss measures to strengthen bilateral cooperation in trade, investment, development, and carbon neutrality. date2024-03-29

Preemptive business realignments to accelerate New Industrial Policy 2.0

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) held the 41st deliberation committee meeting for business realignment on March 28 and granted approval to seven domestic companies that submitted plans to realign their business portfolio towards digital transition and carbon neutrality.   TOPIND, a Korean manufacturer of special vehicle parts and prototype vehicles, aims to start producing lightweight electric vehicle (EV) parts using carbon-fiber reinforced plastic materials. Another car parts manufacturer Samhyun plans to secure its future growth engine in smart actuators for EVs with a three-in-one motor, controller, and brake system. Woorikidsplus, a cosmetics startup, plans to move into the global market with eco-friendly, water-soluble packaging. The approved seven companies revealed plans to make over KRW 91.1 billion in investment and create 285 new job openings over the next five years.   MOTIE has announced that a support system for digital transition and carbon neutrality business realignment will be installed starting March 29, with the Corporate Vitality Improvement Special Act turning permanent and the special provisions of the Commercial Act and Fair Trade Act becoming applicable on all business realignments as of the second half of this year. date2024-03-29

Global auto parts production facility completed, bolstering Korea's future mobility supply chain

Deputy Minister for International Trade and Investment Choi Woo-seok attended the completion ceremony of Valeo Mobility Korea’s production facility for manufacturing self-driving vehicle parts on March 28 in the Daegu National Industrial Complex.   The French company Valeo has steadily invested in Korea for over 35 years since its first joint investment with a Korean company in 1988, and its accumulated investment in Korea amounts to USD 485 million. It currently runs a total of 11 business sites in Korea.   Upon making the $56 million investment decision in August 2022, the company launched the construction of the production facility in the Daegu National Industrial Complex for manufacturing future mobility core parts like sensors and image-recognition cameras of autonomous vehicles. The investment is anticipated to strengthen Valeo’s supply chain for future mobility transition and contribute to the local economy by generating an estimated 110 new job openings and KRW 200 billion in annual sales of future mobility.   Since taking office, Korea’s current administration has focused on nurturing the world’s top investment environment for domestic and overseas companies by increasing investment tax credit, strengthening incentives for advanced industry sectors, and taking deregulatory measures. As part of these efforts, the budget for foreign investment cash grants has spiked from the previous 50 billion won (2023) to 200 billion won (2024). date2024-03-28

MOTIE and Thermo Fisher Scientific discuss investment prospects for raw biomaterials facility in Korea

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong met Mark Smedley, a senior vice president of Thermo Fisher Scientific, on March 28 in Seoul to discuss the global pharma and biotech company’s prospects of investment in establishing a raw and subsidiary biomaterials production facility in Korea.   Trade Minister Cheong remarked that “Samsung, Lotte, Celltrion and other major domestic firms are aggressively expanding investment to bolster productivity in line with Korea’s aim to become a global pharmaceutical manufacturing powerhouse,” and added that “there is a reason why Merck, Sartorius, Cytiva, and other world-leading biomaterials companies have selected Korea as the final investment destination.”   Meanwhile, in addition to bio, the global pharma company revealed plans for cooperation with Korea’s battery and semiconductor firms to seek solutions to battery quality improvement. date2024-03-28

Boao Forum for Asia 2024 hosts discussions for Asian countries' intraregional cooperation

Deputy Minister for Trade Yang Byeong-nae attended the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) Annual Conference 2024 held in Boao, China's Hainan Province, through March 26-29 under the theme of "Asia and the World: Common Challenges, Shared Responsibilities.”   Launched in 2001, BFA is a venue where Asia’s key figures in governments, corporations, and academia gather to discuss measures for economic development. This year’s conference was attended by the representatives of 29 Asian countries.   In the panel session on “Asia: Building an Epicentrum of Growth,” Deputy Minister Yang discussed measures for enhancing intraregional economic cooperation with other experts, presenting the following three key tasks for Asia to identify new opportunities for growth amid recent global trade uncertainties and exercise global leadership: enhancing the quality of intraregional economic cooperation; proposing a vision for global agendas like climate change response and digital economy; and heightening the utilization of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) that entered into force in 2022.   He further emphasized Korea’s plan to utilize the intraregional cooperation platform like RCEP and ASEAN-Plus Three (APT) for facilitating trade and investment, stabilizing the supply chain, and diffusing new trade norms, including green and digital. date2024-03-28

Korea and Uzbekistan step up cooperation on TBTs

The Korean Agency for Technology and Standards (KATS) under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) invited the delegation from the Uzbek Agency for Technical Regulation to Korea for discussions on technical barriers to trade (TBTs) between the two countries, and visited the certification and testing sites of Korean companies exporting to Uzbekistan to discuss measures for resolving TBTs.   As of this January, the Uzbek government has mandated that one institution be in charge of conducting tests and issuing certifications to all imported home appliances as part of additional measures for enhancing the country’s electrical power industry productivity and export potential. However, Korean firms exporting to Uzbekistan reported certification and customs bottleneck issues, on which KATS and the Uzbek delegation gathered information and opinions and agreed to review the possibility of conducting on-site inspections on Korean exporters and issuing an import certification effective for a three-year period instead of testing each unit product.   In view of Uzbekistan’s active preparation for accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO), KATS Director General Changsoo Lee said that strengthening bilateral cooperation between KATS and the Uzbek Agency for Technical Regulation will serve as the future base for joint efforts in responding to TBTs through the WTO. date2024-03-28

Korea and Cambodia to strengthen bilateral economic cooperation

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong met with Cambodia’s Acting Minister of Commerce and Secretary of State Kem Sithan on March 27 in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, to discuss measures to strengthen bilateral cooperation in commemoration of the third anniversary of the two countries’ Free Trade Agreement (FTA)’s entry into force (December 2022), with aim to review FTA implementation and uncover promising areas for cooperation.   The talks held this day covered a broad range of topics, including measures for expanding trade and investment, infrastructure, and carbon neutrality, and the two sides agreed to seriously push forward the establishment of a TASK center on food processing, as well as cooperation in NDCs (nationally determined contributions).   The two sides reviewed the current trends and outcomes of bilateral trade and discussed measures for efficient management of rules of origin and customs procedures. Moreover, they agreed to hold the first Korea-Cambodia FTA Joint Committee meeting during the first half of this year and to make efforts for diversifying trade items, strengthening the value chain and enhancing companies’ utilization of FTA.   Trade Minister Cheong stated that he looks forward to seeing Cambodia become one of the key partners for Korea’s economic cooperation with ASEAN through the bilateral FTA. date2024-03-28

Korea and Thailand declare launch of negotiations for bilateral EPA

Deputy Minister for FTA Negotiations Roh Keon-ki met Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce Phumtham Wechayachai on March 28 in Bangkok to declare the launch of negotiations for the Korea-Thailand Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA).   The two countries agreed to push for negotiations in areas of mutual interest, including economic cooperation, digital, and government procurement, and attain a high level of market access in goods and services through the EPA.   Once concluded, the Korea-Thailand EPA is anticipated to: increase bilateral trade in automobiles, EVs, and car parts; create opportunities in construction, manufacturing, and visual and auditory service markets; strengthen economic cooperation in supply chains, bio, and clean economy; and build forward-looking strategic trade relations between the two countries.   Korea and Thailand have both completed all required procedures for launching negotiations and plan to hold the first official negotiating round in the near future once prior consultations make headway in the first half of this year. date2024-03-28