Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

Prime Loan Export Package guarantee certificate award ceremony

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Dukgeun Ahn presented the guarantee certificate for the “Prime Loan Export Package” to Fusei Menix CEO Choi Byeong-cheol on April 3 at the Hana Bank Headquarters in Seoul, accompanied by Hana Bank President Lee Seung-lyul and K-SURE President Jang Young-jin. date2024-04-04

Semiconductor equipment manufacturer becomes first beneficiary of Prime Loan Export Package

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Dukgeun Ahn presented the guarantee certificate for the “Prime Loan Export Package” to Fusei Menix CEO Choi Byeong-cheol on April 3 at the Hana Bank Headquarters in Seoul, accompanied by Hana Bank President Lee Seung-lyul and K-SURE President Jang Young-jin.   The prime loan export package, serviced by Korea's five major banks and K-SURE, offers KRW 2.2 trillion in funding benefits for exporting SMEs and middle-market companies with doubled limit and lower interest (down 0.7 percentage points max), while exempting trade insurance premium and guarantee fees.   The country’s first beneficiary of the prime loan, Fusei Menix is a Korean semiconductor equipment manufacturer specializing in hydraulic presses for printed circuit boards (PCBs) and currently exports to 20 countries. The company recently faced difficulty increasing production output to meet soaring demand overseas, and the prime loan package has enabled the firm to secure the necessary funds for export.   Minister Dukgeun Ahn remarked that the “Prime loan export package is the beginning of our efforts to help exporting companies overcome financial issues through an all-time high 255 trillion won trade insurance.” date2024-04-04

Korea Smart Grid Expo 2024

Trade, Industry and Energy Vice Minister Namho Choe attended the Korea Smart Grid Expo (KSGE) 2024, held through April 3-5 at COEX in Seoul, where visitors can check out the latest technologies and products in the smart grid and power industries. With this year marking the Expo's 14th anniversary, KSGE 2024 showcases three special booths focusing on energy storage systems (ESSs), distributed energy, and EV charging infrastructure. date2024-04-03

AI Semiconductor Cooperation Forum inauguration ceremony

Trade, Industry and Energy Vice Minister Kang Kyungsung and Science and ICT Vice Minister Kang Dohyun attended the “AI Semiconductor Cooperation Forum” inauguration ceremony on April 2, held at the Korea Semiconductor Industry Association (KSIA) as a follow-up measure to the semiconductor-themed public forum in January, with aim to foster the development of Korea’s AI semiconductor technology and to facilitate coordination between chip suppliers and buyers.   The ceremony was attended by representatives of related ministries and companies, including Samsung Electronics, Hyundai Motor, Korea Planning & Evaluation Institute of Industrial Technology (KEIT), and the Korea Association of Robot Industry. date2024-04-03

Korea Smart Grid Expo 2024 showcases latest technologies in power industry

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) announced on April 3 that the Korea Smart Grid Expo (KSGE) 2024, hosted by MOTIE and organized by Korea Smart Grid Association and COEX, is held through April 3-5 at COEX in Seoul, where visitors can check out the latest technologies and products in the smart grid and power industries.   With this year marking the Expo's 14th anniversary, KSGE 2024 showcases three special booths focusing on energy storage systems (ESSs), distributed energy, and EV charging infrastructure.   The Energy Storage Industry Exhibition presents not only the conventional lithium-ion battery storage system, but other various energy storage technologies like flow battery, heat- and compressed air ESS, and pumped storage power plants.   The Distributed Energy Industry Exhibition, in line with the Special Act on the Promotion of Distributed Energy to be enforced in June, presents a new business model that caters to regional characteristics, ranging from integrated power plants to microgrids.   The EV Charging Infrastructure Exhibition showcases ultra-high speed, portable chargers, and operation platforms for both domestic and overseas markets, designed by charger manufacturers and operators. date2024-04-03

Government to set up one-stop help desk for exporters' CBAM response

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) announced on April 2 that relevant ministries gave a joint briefing on the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) and other international environmental regulations to discuss new export opportunities and presented the following measures for supporting companies’ CBAM response.   First, the Government has decided to integrate the briefings, which had previously been held separately per each ministry and institution, into joint interministerial briefings. The briefings will be held in regions with higher numbers of impacted companies, beginning with Yeongnam, followed by the capital region (May, October) and Chungcheong Province (July).   Second, the currently siloed help desks run by MOTIE and the Ministry of Environment (ME) will be streamlined into a one-stop government help desk for CBAM response to improve customer convenience.   Third, companies lacking experience in carbon emission calculation will be provided with consultation service starting this year. The Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) will announce the project for the second time through May 6-31, and ME will open applications to interested companies from April 22-May 17.   Fourth, Korea Customs Service (KCS) will provide exporting businesses with information on CBAM via phone call, mobile text message, and email as to whether their export items fall under CBAM regulation. date2024-04-03

Korea launches AI Semiconductor Cooperation Forum for synergy along chip value chain

Trade, Industry and Energy Vice Minister Kang Kyungsung and Science and ICT Vice Minister Kang Dohyun attended the “AI Semiconductor Cooperation Forum” inauguration ceremony on April 2, held as a follow-up measure to the semiconductor-themed public forum in January, with aim to foster the development of Korea’s AI semiconductor technology and to facilitate coordination between chip suppliers and buyers.   At the ceremony were buyers consisting of firms representing Korea’s seven major industries, as well as suppliers in semiconductor intellectual property (IP), fabless, foundry, and post-process. Industrial associations making up the semiconductor value chain entered a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on invigorating the AI semiconductor ecosystem and discussed related policies.   The Korean government plans to support the cost of developing on-device AI semiconductor products through supplier-buyer matching and evaluations. Moreover, a system chip inspection support center project will be launched in the second half of this year to provide the testing and inspection service AI chip companies need. There are also plans to give financial support through the chip ecosystem fund and support R&D for developing next-generation intelligent semiconductor technology and processing-in-memory (PIM) semiconductors. date2024-04-03

Korean shipyards rank 1st in global orders for Q1 2024

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) announced on April 3 that Korea’s shipyards landed first place in Q1 2024 in terms of new global orders, a first in in three years.   According to UK-based Clarksons Research, Korea won USD 13.6 billion worth of orders in the first three months of this year, up by 41.4 percent year-on-year. The value amounts to approximately 45.5 percent of last year’s annual orders ($29.9 billion) and 44.7 percent of total global orders. In the month of March alone, ship exports grew for the eighth consecutive month since July 2023, boosting the country’s total exports.   Korea's shipyards have been making effort to transition over to carbon-free and digital in step with the shifting global landscape, focusing on eco-friendly and high value-added ships. In the first quarter of this year, they won 100 percent of all global orders for eco-friendly vessels, comprising LNG carriers (29 vessels) and ammonia ships (20 vessels).   This March, MOTIE announced the “Next Generation K-Shipbuilding Initiative,” containing plans to invest 9 trillion won in the shipbuilding industry over the next five years through public-private joint efforts for securing super gap technologies and talent training. MOTIE also plans to develop eco-friendly ships and autonomous self-navigating ships into Korea’s core export items through active utilization of regulatory sandboxes. date2024-04-03

Korea and Chile launch 9th official negotiating round for upgrading bilateral FTA

Director General for FTA Policy Ahn Chang-yong is heading the Korean delegation in the ninth official negotiating round for upgrading the Korea-Chile Free Trade Agreement (FTA) from April 2-4 in Chile, Santiago. Pablo Urria, Acting Director for Bilateral Economic Affairs at Chile's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, is leading the Chilean delegation.   Having come into effect on April 1, 2004, the FTA with Chile is Korea’s first FTA and has increased bilateral trade five-fold, bolstering the economic cooperative relations.   The two sides commenced the FTA upgrade negotiations in 2018 with aim to deepen bilateral trade, investment, and cooperative relations, as well as to incorporate modernized trade rules into the Agreement with respect to supply chains, energy, raw materials, digital economy, intellectual property rights, and environment.   With this year marking the 20th anniversary of the Korea-Chile FTA’s entry into force, both sides’ trade authorities agreed to work on making tangible progress through this ninth official negotiating round. date2024-04-03

Applications now open for IPEF Climate Tech 100

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) announced on April 2 that the global data platform and marketing survey company, HolonIQ, opened applications for Climate Tech 100 starting April 1, as part of an initiative to discover promising climate tech startups and connect them with global investors at the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) Clean Economy Investor Forum to be held this June in Singapore.   The final ranking of the 100 climate tech companies will be revealed at the Forum, in the attendance of high-level officials of relevant governments, global investors, and multilateral development banks (MDBs). The top 100 startups' technologies are to be introduced and promoted to global investors at the Forum, while top 30 startups will be granted one-on-one matching and pitch opportunities for attracting investment.   More information is available at HolonIQ’s website (www.holoniq.com), where interested startups can sign up by April 22. date2024-04-02