Ministry of Trade Industry and Resources

Korea and Malaysia Begin Seventh Round of Bilateral FTA Negotiations

Director General for FTA Negotiations Kwon Hye-jin at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE, Minister Ahn Duk-geun) is leading the Korean delegation in the seventh round of official negotiations for the Korea-Malaysia Free Trade Agreement (FTA), being held from February 17 to 20, 2025, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The Malaysian delegation is led by Senior Director for Strategic Negotiations Sumathi Balakrishnan at the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI).  Since the two countries jointly announced the resumption of bilateral FTA negotiations last March, the two sides have made swift progress through the subsequent fourth, fifth, and sixth rounds. In the seventh round, the Korean government aims to move negotiations forward in areas including goods, services, investment, rules of origin, and economic cooperation, with a focus on expanding bilateral  trade, investment, and promotion, as well as improving market access. date2025-02-17

Effective Tariff Rate on U.S. Imports Remains Close to Zero Under the Korea-U.S. FTA

Following the Trump administration’s announcement on its memorandum on reciprocal trade and tariffs on February 14, 2025, several foreign media outlets reported that Korea applies an average tariff rate of approximately 13.6 percent to U.S. imports, behind only Mexico and Canada. According to the World Tariff Profile published in July 2024, Korea's average Most Favored Nation (MFN) tariff rate is approximately 13.4 percent. However, Korea has free trade agreements (FTAs) with many of its major trading partners, which have significantly lowered the effective tariff rates on imports from those countries. Korea signed an FTA with the United States in June 2007, and the agreement took effect in March 2012. As of 2024, the effective tariff rate on U.S. imports is approximately 0.79 percent before duty refunds. The rate is even lower when refunds are taken into account and is expected to decline further in 2025 under the scheduled tariff reductions. Under the Korea-U.S. FTA, tariffs on U.S. manufactured goods enter Korea duty-free. date2025-02-14

Korea’s ICT exports drop 0.4% in January

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) of the Republic of Korea announced on February 13 that exports and imports of Korea’s information and communications technology (ICT) goods for the month of January 2025 reached USD 16.3 billion and $13.5 billion, respectively. The trade balance stood at an estimated surplus of $2.8 billion. January ICT exports inched down 0.4 percent year-on-year, affected by the reduced number of working days (-4) from this year’s long Seollal holidays (January 25–30), but sharp demand for semiconductors and computers/peripherals softened the fall. Semiconductor exports grew 7.7 percent to $10.1 billion despite the drop in system chip exports (down 4.3 percent to $3.5 billion), as the rapidly expanding AI market and robust memory chip exports (up 17.2 percent to $6.2 billion) drove overall demand. Computers/peripherals (up 10.0 percent to $0.9 billion) maintained their upward trajectory for the 13th consecutive month as solid-state drive (SSD) exports (up 27.1 percent to $0.6 billion) achieved solid growth. By region, ICT exports to China (including Hong Kong) declined (down 19.5 percent to $6.0 billion) in spite of increased shipments of mobile phones, as semiconductor and display exports shrank. Exports to Vietnam (up 12.2 percent to $2.9 billion) climbed for the 18th consecutive month even as mobile phones and other items in general contracted, thanks to semiconductors’ strong growth. U.S.-bound ICT exports (up 24.6 percent to $2.2 billion) rose for the 15th consecutive month as shipments of semiconductors and computers/peripherals jumped on the backs of demand for servers and datacenters. To the EU (down 18.9 percent to $0.7 billion), semiconductor exports increased, whereas mobile phones and displays diminished. To Japan (down 4.9 percent to $0.3 billion), ICT goods like displays, mobile phones, and computers/peripherals advanced, while semiconductor exports slackened.   date2025-02-13

Korea’s Top 10 Manufacturing Industries to Invest $82 Billion in 2025

Minister Ahn Duk-geun of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) held the fifth Industrial Investment Strategy meeting in Seoul on February 12, 2025. Representatives from Korea’s 10 major manufacturing sectors attended the meeting, along with the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), and the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics & Trade (KIET). They reviewed the industries’ investment performance in 2024, investment plans for 2025, and measures to stimulate domestic investment by sector. Korea’s top 10 manufacturing industries invested a combined KRW 114 trillion in 2024, surpassing their initial target of KRW 110 trillion. Despite challenging conditions, including financing costs caused by higher-for-longer interest rates and rising import prices due to high exchange rates, semiconductors and automobiles led the overall investment performance on an upward trajectory. Korea’s 10 leading manufacturing industries plan to invest approximately KRW 119 trillion in 2025, seven percent higher than the KRW 110 trillion that had been planned for 2024. that the continued increase in planned investment by Korea’s major manufacturing sectors is particularly significant  amid intensifying global tariff war and other external and internal uncertainties. The semiconductor industry plans to raise investments in advanced memory chips in response to the growing worldwide demand for artificial intelligence (AI), while the automobile industry is aiming to expand investment for its EV transition. Investments in secondary battery and steel, however, are expected to decline due to slowing demand and oversupply. At the meeting, companies called for an extension of the investment tax credit, which failed to pass the National Assembly in 2024, as well as more drastic financial support  and active government measures to minimize trade uncertainties. Noting the importance of domestic investment in job creation and overcoming supply chain uncertainties, Minister Ahn stated that full support will be given to foster a more favorable environment for businesses, allowing Korean companies to steadily increase domestic investments. date2025-02-12

Korea and Czech Republic Strengthen Standards Cooperation in Battery, Hydrogen, and AI

The Korean Agency for Technology and Standards (KATS) under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE, Minister Ahn Duk-geun) Korea launched the Korea-Czech Republic Standards Cooperation Workshop in Seoul on February 11, 2025. The event brought together approximately 50 private standards experts and government officials from the two countries. The Workshop followed an agreement signed in October 2024 in Edinburgh to implement standards cooperation and to support the outcomes of the bilateral summit held last September.  Korean and Czech standards experts shared the latest technology and standardization trends in battery, hydrogen, and artificial intelligence (AI) and exchanged views on standards information and joint standards development research for bilateral standards cooperation. On the margins of the event, the Korean Standards Association (KSA) and the Czechoslovak Association of Standardization (CAS) signed a standards information distribution license agreement to promote support for Korean and Czech exporting businesses’ obtaining of standards approval for mutual market entry. date2025-02-11

CFE Global Working Group Launches Inaugural Meeting

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE, Minister Ahn Duk-geun) held the CFE Global Working Group meeting on February 7, 2025, via videoconference. Participants included delegations from the Czech Republic, Japan, United Arab Emirates (UAE), the International Energy Agency (IEA), and the Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) Secretariat. Participants discussed the definition, standards, and technical criteria of carbon-free energy, as well as practical measures to widen global participation in the CFE Initiative, including the provision of incentives for participating businesses. MOTIE and the Carbon Free (CF) Alliance are leading the Carbon Free Energy (CFE) Initiative, which promotes the technology-neutral approach of utilizing various carbon-free energy sources such as renewables, nuclear energy, and clean hydrogen to facilitate industries’ cost-effective achievement of carbon neutrality. The CFE Initiative has won the support of a total of 13 countries, international organizations, and groups. During the meeting, CF Alliance Chairman Lee Hoe-sung stated that the CFE Global Working Group will lay the foundation for discourse regarding the definition and standards of carbon-free energy that can gain general acceptance in the international community. CEM Secretariat Head Jean-François Gagné welcomed the active discussions within the CFE Global Working Group, which currently functions as the CEM platform, and expressed hope that its work would help build a stronger cooperation base. Meanwhile, Korea, the Czech Republic, Japan, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) agreed to deepen discussions for an early establishment of CFE implementation standards, while also stepping up cooperation to make progress at the CEM Ministerial meeting slated for August 25, 2025. date2025-02-10

Korea-Vietnam Plus Joint Working Group Discusses Expanding Trade and Investment

Director General for International Trade Relations Kim Jong-chul at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE, Minister Ahn Duk-geun) and Do Quoc Hung, Director General of the Asia-Africa Market Department at Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT),  headed their respective delegations at the third Korea-Vietnam Plus Joint Working Group (“Working Group”) meeting held on February 7, 2025, via videoconference. The Working Group is a joint platform for bilateral consultations on expanding the Korea-Vietnam trade and investment, with the participation of government bodies, commercial attachés, and trade assistance institutions from both countries. It aims to achieve the bilateral trade target of USD 150 billion by 2030, jointly announced by the two countries’ leaders in 2022. The Working Group convened its first meeting in September 2023. At today’s meeting, the two sides reviewed the Korea-Vietnam trade and investment and exchanged views on major issues, including the global oversupply. They also discussed nuclear energy cooperation and measures to resolve challenges faced by businesses from both countries. Director General Kim highlighted the importance of expanding forward-looking economic cooperation with Vietnam, Korea’s third largest trading partner, and proposed that the two countries make joint effort towards broader trade and investment in commemoration of the 10th anniversary of the Korea-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (FTA). Noting that Korea is Vietnam’s largest investor, Director General Do Quoc Hung expressed hope for the two countries’ mutual growth and ensured interest and support concerning the local business issues experienced by Korean companies in Vietnam. date2025-02-07

K-Grid Export Alliance Launches Full-Scale Efforts to Enter Global Power Grid Market

Deputy Minister for Energy Policy Lee Ho-hyeon at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) chaired the first general meeting of the K-Grid Export Alliance at the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation (K-SURE) in Seoul on February 4, 2025. The meeting of the Alliance, which was launched in December 2024, focused on creating new opportunities for Korean businesses in the global power infrastructure market. Since announcing its strategy for the global power grid market in December 2024, MOTIE worked with export support institutions to concretize measures for boosting exports in 2025.  First, K-SURE will continue providing short-term preferential loans (up to double in limit) and insurance premium discounts (up to 20 percent) to transformer and power cable exporting businesses in 2025. It will also expand the range of relevant export items to include energy storage systems (ESS).  Moreover, MOTIE and the Korea Electric Association (KEA) will jointly coordinate overseas trade shows for power grids and related equipment, which were previously managed separately by different institutions. The new arrangement will produce more tangible outcomes by streamlining the process of company recruitment, promotion, and performance management. Today’s meeting was attended by representatives of 15 companies and institutions, including Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO), Korea Southern Power Co., Hyundai E&C, LS Electric, and KEA. Participants discussed export strategies in light of the emerging uncertainties as well as opportunities, such as the growing demand for artificial intelligence (AI) and datacenters. They also explored business models capable of meeting the complex needs of local overseas markets based on Korean companies’ expertise in engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) and manufacturing. Deputy Minister Lee stated that the global power grid market offers Korea’s power industry a vital opportunity for further growth, adding that public and private sectors will make joint effort to establish the industry as the country’s next new model for energy cooperation. date2025-02-04