Ministry of Trade Industry and Resources

Minister Paik pushes for Korea-Singapore ties in industry, energy, and trade

Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Paik Ungyu (right) sought stronger Korea-Singapore ties in terms of industry, energy, and trade, and called for more joint action in those areas, during talks with Singaporean Minister for Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing, in Singapore on May 15.   During his two-day visit to Singapore, Minister Paik agreed with his Singaporean counterpart to work together in response to the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The two ministers discussed collaboration be date2018-05-15

Minister Paik hosts first public-private meeting for industrial innovation and growth

Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Paik Ungyu (left) hosted the first Industry Innovation 2020 Platform meeting to discuss strategies for industrial innovation and growth with business leaders and academics in Seoul on May 11.   Through the Industry Innovation 2020 Platform launched by the Ministry, the public and private sectors will draw up a detailed roadmap to achieve results of industrial innovation by 2020 and cooperate to overcome obstacles in the process.   During the m date2018-05-11

Ministry signs MOU with GM to advance Korean auto industry

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Paik Ungyu (center) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with General Motors International President Barry Engle (right) to advance the Korean automobile industry in Seoul on May 10.   Under the MOU, GM will establish its Asia-Pacific headquarters in Korea, develop GM Korea to serve as a hub for production, sales, and technological development in Asia, and increase purchases of Korean auto parts as an effort to enhance the competitiveness of the K date2018-05-10

Ministry launches task force to study effect of re-imposed US sanctions on Iran

Vice Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Lee In-ho (right) led the inaugural meeting of the Ministry’s task force, launched to deal with renewed U.S. sanctions on Iran, in Seoul on May 9.   Other attendees included refineries and oil industry groups. The Ministry launched the task force following the U.S. decision to withdraw from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPA) and to re-impose sanctions on Iran.   The task force will study any possible impact on the Korea date2018-05-09

Minister Paik discusses Korea-Japan industrial and trade ties

Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Paik Ungyu (left) met with Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Hiroshige Seko to enhance their bilateral cooperation in the industrial, energy, and trade sectors in Tokyo on May 8.   In his opening remarks during the ministerial meeting, Minister Paik said that the two countries should seek new business models to lead in an age of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.   The two trade ministers shared their vision to adopt cutting-edg date2018-05-08

Minister Paik discusses energy cooperation with Japanese tech leader

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Paik Ungyu (third from left) discussed with SoftBank Group CEO Masayoshi Son (second from right) to seek energy cooperation during his visit to Tokyo, Japan, on May 8.During the meeting, Minister Paik and CEO Son exchanged views on various topics, including cooperation on renewable energies, construction of a Northeast Asia supergrid, and response to the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR).Minister Paik agreed with CEO Son about a significant decrease in the re date2018-05-08

Minister Paik talks with Saudi counterpart to improve energy and industrial ties

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Paik Ungyu (right) talked with Saudi Arabia’s Energy, Industry, and Mineral Resources Minister Khalid A. Al-Falih to bolster energy and industrial ties in Seoul on May 4.The two ministers reviewed the progress of the Korea-Saudi Arabia Vision 2030, agreed to coordinate its second committee meeting, and discussed cooperation in automobile and pharmaceutical and biomedical industries.Minister Paik showed Korea’s interest in participating in Saudi Ara date2018-05-04

Minister Paik attends Korea-Turkey business forum

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Paik Ungyu (fourth from right) met with Turkey’s Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci (fifth from right) to enhance business ties between the two countries at the Korea-Turkey business forum held in Seoul on May 2.In his congratulatory address at the forum, Minister Paik highlighted that entrepreneurial cooperation between the two nations is important for strengthening the economic relationship. He also added that the role of governments is to create a collab date2018-05-02

Korea’s outbound shipments inch down 1.5% in April

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on May 1 that Korea’s exports in April inched down 1.5 percent year-on-year to USD 50.1 billion. Nevertheless, with the last month’s exports posting $51.6 billion, this was the first time for Korean exports to surpass $50 billion for two straight months.Since exports excluding ships were up 10.4 percent to $48.3 billion, the slight contraction in overall outbound shipments is largely attributable to a base effect that resulted from date2018-05-01

Online retail sales grow at double-digit rate in March

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on April 27 that online retail sales in March expanded 17.0 percent from a year earlier.Sales of brick-and-mortar retailers also advanced 5.4 percent year-on-year. This increase came from every type of in-store retailers, from convenience stores to hypermarkets.Thanks to the strong performances from both online and in-store retailers, overall retail sales in March saw a growth of 9.4 percent.The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy estimates date2018-04-27