Ministry of Trade Industry and Resources

Trade Minister Cheong Attends WEF 2025 in Davos

Minister for Trade Cheong In-kyo of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE, Minister Ahn Duk-geun) attended the 2025 Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF), held in Davos, Switzerland, from January 20 to 24, 2025, as the representative of the Korean government. Held under the theme "Collaboration for the Intelligent Age," this year’s WEF brings together approximately 350 participants, including heads of state and government, government representatives, heads of international organizations, and global CEOs to discuss trade and investment and other issues. On the margins of the event, Trade Minister Cheong will hold bilateral talks with counterparts representing more than 10 economies, including ASEAN, the EU, France, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Japan, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, and the UK. He will also take part in a trade and investment leadership session with other trade ministers to raise awareness on the need to restore the multilateral trade system. At the informal WTO trade ministerial meeting on January 24, Trade Minister Cheong will highlight the importance of enhancing the stability and predictability of the trade environment amid rising protectionism and other challenges. He will also reaffirm Korea’s commitment to these goals through its APEC chairmanship this year and emphasize its firm support for the multilateral trade system. date2025-01-21

10th subsequent negotiating round of Korea-China FTA for services and investment

Director General for FTA Negotiations Kwon Hye-jin at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) of the Republic of Korea led the Korean delegation in the 10th subsequent negotiating round of the Korea-China Free Trade Agreement (FTA) for services and investment through January 15–17 in Seoul. date2025-01-21

Korea and Japan Step Up Cooperation in Carbon Regulation Response

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE, Minister Ahn Duk-geun) and Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) held the second Korea-Japan Global Green Policy Dialogue in Seoul on January 17, 2025, and discussed cooperation in responding to global carbon regulations, as well as carbon-neutrality policies and clean energy. Launched as a follow-up to the meeting between the two countries’ trade and industry ministers’ in April 2024, the Dialogue was elevated to director general-level in view of the rising importance of responding to global carbon regulations. The two sides agreed to work together to prevent global carbon regulations from becoming trade barriers. They also reaffirmed the need for cooperation in clean energy and agreed to strengthen bilateral and multilateral cooperation toward carbon neutrality.  MOTIE’s Director General for New Trade Strategy and Policy Support Shim Jin-soo stated that as countries move to introduce carbon-related regulations, broader cooperation with likeminded countries such as Japan will help strengthen Korean industries’ carbon competitiveness and minimize negative impact on exports.  Ryuzaki Takatsugu, Director-General for GX Promotion at Japan’s METI, said that it is important for Japan and Korea to work closely to effectively respond to the green transformation and other related changes across the global landscape. Going forward, the Korean government plans to step up support to strengthen domestic companies’ ability to respond to global carbon regulations through briefings, help desks, and consultations. date2025-01-17

Korea’s auto exports enter $70 bln thresholds for 2nd year running

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) of the Republic of Korea announced today that Korea’s automobile exports for 2024 reached USD 70.8 billion, entering the $70 billion thresholds for the second year running.  Marking the second highest export record following the $70.9 billion set in 2023, the achievement is attributable to the strong performance of eco-friendly vehicles driven by the sharp growth of hybrid cars (up 45.8 percent year-on-year to $11.3 billion) despite the slowing global demand for electric vehicles. For the month of December 2024, automobile exports shrank 5.3 percent year-on-year to $6.0 billion as a consequence of safety inspections and parts manufacturing setbacks from the heavy November snow and unit export price falls from reduced EV exports. Meanwhile, overseas shipments of automobiles for the month of December rose to 251,847 units, continuing their strong upward trajectory. Korea’s annual automobile production recorded 4,128,447 units (down 2.7 percent) in 2024, 67 percent (2,782,639 units) of which were sold to overseas markets. Domestic sales in 2024 dropped 6.5 percent to 1,625,848 units as a result of dampened consumer confidence and weakened demand for EVs. However, the domestic sales of eco-friendly cars soared 18.2 percent to 650,122 units in 2024, four out of 10 newly sold cars being eco-friendly vehicles. Notably, hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) sales grew 32 percent year-on-year to 495,577 units, taking up 76 percent and 30 percent of Korea’s eco-friendly car sales and entire domestic car sales in 2024, respectively.   date2025-01-16

Korea and China Hold 10th Round of FTA Follow-Up Negotiations on Services and Investment

Director General for FTA Negotiations Kwon Hye-jin of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE, Minister Ahn Duk-geun) is leading the Korean delegation at the 10th round of Korea-China Free Trade Agreement (FTA) follow-up negotiations on services and investment, to be held from January 15 to 17, 2025, in Seoul. Chen Zhiyang, Deputy Division Director of the Department of International Trade and Economic Affairs at China’s Ministry of Commerce, will lead the Chinese delegation. A total of 40 delegates from both countries are participating in the negotiations. Following the bilateral FTA’s entry into force in 2015, Korea and China launched follow-up negotiations on services and investment in March 2018, as provided in the FTA guideline. The two countries have continued discussions through official negotiating rounds, intersessional meetings, and chief delegate meetings. The 10th round is the first official round since the ninth round was held in 2020. In this round, the Korean government aims to accelerate discussions on upgrading the bilateral FTA in areas including service, investment, and finance. date2025-01-16

Korea’s annual ICT exports achieve new highs in 2024

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) of the Republic of Korea announced on January 14 that exports of Korea’s information and communications technology (ICT) goods for 2024 logged an all-time high of USD 235.0 billion, surpassing the previous record set in 2022 ($233.2 billion). Annual ICT imports reached $143.2 billion and the trade balance stood at a surplus of $91.8 billion.  ICT exports have maintained an upward trajectory for 14 consecutive months, entering the $20 billion thresholds for five straight months since August 2024.  Semiconductor exports led overall ICT exports with a historic high of $142.0 billion, boosted by strong demand for artificial intelligence (AI) related goods. The double-digit growth of finished mobile phones and parts exports as well as the sharp growth of computers/peripherals’ solid-state drive (SSD) exports further contributed to last year’s ICT exports performance. By region, ICT exports to China (including Hong Kong) advanced 25.3 percent year-on-year to $97.9 billion in 2024, as robust demand for semiconductors, displays, and mobile phones spurred a powerful rebound from the previous year. To Vietnam (up 14.4 percent to $36.8 billion), semiconductors and mobile phones backed the rebound from the previous year, pushing overall ICT exports over the $30 billion thresholds for the fourth consecutive year. U.S.-bound ICT exports centered on semiconductors and computers/peripherals on the backs of demand for servers and datacenters, achieving fresh annual highs of $29.6 billion (up 31.9 percent). To the EU (up 11.4 percent to $12.2 billion), continued growth of mobile phones and computers/peripherals turned Korea’s ICT exports to an expansion. ICT exports to Japan (down 9.7 percent to $3.8 billion) fell despite the growth of displays and computers/peripherals, as exports of semiconductors and mobile phones shrank. Korea’s export and import of ICT goods for December 2024 recorded $22.7 billion and $13.3 billion, respectively, and the trade balance stood at a surplus of $9.3 billion. ICT exports for the month of December ranks highest among monthly exports in 2024, entering the $20 billion thresholds for the fifth consecutive month since August.   date2025-01-14

Korea and Japan discuss bilateral R&D cooperation

Korea’s Director General for Industrial Technology Convergence Policy Je Kyung-hee held a meeting with Kikukawa Jingo, Director General for Innovation and Environment Policy at Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, today in Seoul and discussed government policies for innovation, measures for private-sector R&D investment support, and technological cooperation with the incoming U.S. administration. date2025-01-13

Korea to Boost Industrial Technology Innovation through Bilateral Cooperation with Israel & Japan

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE, Minister Ahn Duk-geun) held bilateral meetings with Israel’s Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology and Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, respectively, on January 13, 2025, to discuss measures for advanced technology cooperation. During a videoconference meeting of the Korea-Israel Industrial R&D Foundation (KORIL-RDF) board of directors, Korea’s Director General for Industrial Technology Convergence Policy Je Kyung-hee and Alon Stopel, Chief Scientist for Innovation at the Israeli Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology reviewed the two countries’ joint projects slated for 2025  in areas including artificial intelligence (AI), quantum cryptography communication, semiconductors, autonomous driving, and bio. The two sides agreed to make work together to ensure the projects proceed smoothly. The two countries are currently engaging in industrial, academic, and R&D cooperation through  joint R&D support and technical seminars, with annual joint funding of USD 8 million provided through the binational KORIL-RDF established in 2001. At present, 16 joint R&D projects are underway, with seven new projects planned for 2025. The two countries are expected to create synergies by combining Korea’s leading manufacturing base and Israel’s powerful startup ecosystem and technology expertise in advanced industries such as cybersecurity, AI, and semiconductors. Prior to the Korea-Israel videoconference, Director General Je also held a meeting with Kikukawa Jingo, Director General for Innovation and Environment Policy at Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. They discussed government policies to promote innovation, measures to support private-sector R&D investment, and technology cooperation with the incoming U.S. administration. Recognizing the need for cooperation amid changes in the industrial technology landscape, both sides agreed to expand joint research and bilateral exchanges among industry, academia, and research institutions while identifying further areas for collaboration. date2025-01-13

Minister Ahn meets U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Dukgeun Ahn of the Republic of Korea met U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn on January 9 (local time) in Washington D.C. to discuss stronger bilateral industrial, trade, and energy cooperation. date2025-01-13

Minister Ahn meets Atlantic Council Global Energy Center’s Distinguished Fellow Julia Nesheiwat

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Dukgeun Ahn of the Republic of Korea held talks with Atlantic Council Global Energy Center’s Distinguished Fellow Julia Nesheiwat on January 9 (local time) in Washington D.C. to discuss Korea-U.S. cooperation in shipbuilding. date2025-01-13