Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

East Sea “Blue Whale” Gas Drilling Plan Granted Final Approval

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) of the Republic of Korea held the third strategy meeting on East Sea deep-sea gas field development on November 27 at the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) in Seoul with the participation of relevant ministries, national policy research institutes, academia, resource institutions, and private companies, where attendees agreed to give final approval on the Korea National Oil Corporation (KNOC)'s drilling plan for Block 8 and the northern part of Block 6-1 of the gas field, referred to as the “Blue Whale.” They also discussed the investment attraction progress and measures to improve the mining royalty system. Concerning the mining royalty system reform, the Government has established an amended version of the enforcement ordinances and regulations under the Mineral Resources Development Act and completed the legislative proposal notice and consultations with related ministries in line with plans to finish the amendment process by the year end. Meanwhile, KNOC has been launching investment briefing sessions for both global and domestic companies since this July and plans to carry out investment attraction strategies following the first borehole drilling. Upon approval of KNOC’s first borehole drilling plan, a drilling rig will enter Busan Port this December to begin preparations for commencing the two-month drilling process. After analyzing the drilling data, the Korean government plans to announce the first borehole drilling results in the first half of next year.   date2024-11-27

Korea and Georgia Strike EPA Deal

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong of the Republic of Korea and Georgia’s Deputy Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development Genadi Arveladze announced today in Seoul the conclusion of negotiations for the Korea-Georgia Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA). This Agreement is Korea’s first concluded EPA and 26th Free Trade Agreement (FTA) by order of conclusion. Since agreeing to launching the Korea-Georgia EPA negotiations in November 2023, the two sides have been making effort to narrow differences through official and intersessional negotiations, which culminated in today’s conclusion of the Agreement during Deputy Minister Arveladze’s visit to Korea. Trade Minister Cheong assessed that as the two countries are committed to a high level of open trade and extensive cooperation in areas like supply chains, transportation, logistics, and energy through this EPA, it is anticipated that the Agreement will contribute not only to expanding bilateral trade but also to establishing a stable global supply chain. According to the bilateral Agreement, it is conclusive that within 10 years of entry into force, 93.3 percent of Korean items open to Georgia free of tariffs and 91.6 percent of Georgian items open to Korea duty-free. As the Agreement ensures Korea’s access to Georgia’s marine and road cargo transport, warehousing, and cargo brokerage markets, Korean businesses can look forward to diversifying their transport and logistics network, facilitating exports, and stabilizing the supply chain in preparation against geopolitical risks. Furthermore, Georgia’s markets for publication, exhibition, education services, and the music industry will open up to Korea, enhancing opportunities to promote Korea’s cultural content in the Caucasus country. The Korean government plans to swiftly proceed with legal scrubbing among other procedures for the formal signing so that the two countries can move forward their respective domestic process towards the Agreement’s prompt entry into force.   date2024-11-27

MDB Project Plaza 2024

Director General for International Trade Relations Kim Jong-chul attended the MDB Project Plaza 2024 on November 26 in Seoul and gave a welcoming address. The event was attended by representatives of Korea’s engineering and construction industries, overseas MDBs, and overseas project owners. date2024-11-27

Trade Minister meets State Secretary of Mongolia’s Ministry of Economy and Development

Trade Minister Inkyo Cheong met State Secretary of Mongolia’s Ministry of Economy and Development Batkhuu Idesh on November 26 in Seoul at the 4th Korea-Mongolia EPA negotiations and discussed agenda items. date2024-11-27

Trade Minister meets Malaysia’s Minister for Investment, Trade and Industry

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong of the Republic of Korea met with Malaysia’s Minister for Investment, Trade and Industry Tengku Zafrul Aziz on November 25 in Seoul and discussed the Korea-Malaysia Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and measures for industrial cooperation. date2024-11-27

Korea and Malaysia sign economic cooperation MOUs

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong of the Republic of Korea met with Malaysia’s Minister for Investment, Trade and Industry Tengku Zafrul Aziz on November 25 in Seoul on the occasion of Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s visit to Korea and took part in the signing of four MOUs for bilateral economic cooperation. date2024-11-27

Korea on track to laying foundation for mutual recognition of carbon footprint verification

The Korean Agency for Technology and Standards (KATS) under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy of the Republic of Korea, announced on November 25 that the Korea Laboratory Accreditation Scheme (KOLAS) has signed a Multilateral Recognition Arrangement (MLA) with the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) for greenhouse gas verification, including carbon footprint verification. Carbon footprint verification involves companies calculating the greenhouse gas emissions generated throughout a product’s entire lifecycle—from raw material extraction to manufacturing, distribution, and disposal. Accredited third-party verification bodies then review these calculations and issue verification certificates. Recently, major economies such as the European Union (EU) have signaled plans to mandate carbon footprint verification for imported products as part of their carbon emission regulations. The EU's Battery Regulation and Ecodesign Directive are notable examples of these initiatives. Since KOLAS introduced a carbon footprint verification accreditation system in January 2023, eight organizations, including Korea Testing & Research Institute (KTR), Korea Testing Laboratory (KTL), and Korea Testing Certification (KTC), have been accredited as verification bodies. To ensure the international reliability of these bodies, KOLAS has actively pursued the signing of the IAF MLA. This agreement signifies that the verification capabilities and reliability of KOLAS-accredited carbon footprint verification bodies (currently eight) are now internationally recognized. With a framework for mutual recognition of verification certificates established through collaboration with overseas accredited bodies, Korean exporters are expected to significantly reduce the time and costs associated with local verification processes abroad. Notably, major testing institutions with extensive international networks, such as KTR, KTL, and KTC, are among the KOLAS-accredited verification bodies, promising seamless collaboration with overseas counterparts in the future.   KATS President Jin Jong-wook stated that the technical capabilities and reliability of KOLAS-accredited verification bodies have gained international recognition through this agreement, paving the way for carbon footprint verification certificates issued in Korea to be widely accepted overseas. He added that KATS will continue to foster an environment where Korean companies can access global markets with a single round of testing, certification, and verification.   date2024-11-26

Korea’s retail industry climbs 6.7% in October

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) announced today that Korea’s retail industry grew 6.7 percent year-on-year for the month of October 2024, with offline sales remaining flat (up 0.0 percent) and online sales advancing 13.9 percent, respectively. MOTIE's monthly retail sales figures are based on surveys of 23 major retailers. Thirteen of them are brick-and-mortar retailers: three department store chains, three hypermarket chains, three convenience store chains, and four super supermarket (SSMs) operators. The remaining 10 are online retailers. By offline retail channel, hypermarket sales dropped 3.4 percent despite the increase in food products (up 2.4 percent), as home appliances/culture (down 22.2 percent) fell. Department store sales slid 2.6 percent despite the growth in food products (up 2.5 percent) and foreign designer labels (up 2.5 percent), as autumn apparel purchases and the number of holidays (-1) decreased in comparison with last year. Convenience store sales increased 3.7 percent overall, with food products (up 4.0 percent) and nonfood products (up 3.4 percent) both expanding. SSM operators climbed 7.1 percent, driven by food products (up 8.3 percent) from high demand for eating in, while nonfood products (down 5.5 percent) continued to drop. Online retail sales leaped 13.9 percent on the backs of robust demand for travel packages and food deliveries, steadily raising service/other (up 66.5 percent), food products (up 24.8 percent), and living furniture (up 11.7 percent). Meanwhile, the decline in consumer sentiment and impact from overseas direct purchases (ODP) are slowing down sales of fashion/clothing (down 9.8 percent), sports (down 6.6 percent), and home appliances/electronics (down 12.7 percent).   date2024-11-26

MDB Project Plaza 2024 launches to enhance global project opportunities for Korean firms

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) and the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MOEF) of the Republic of Korea are jointly hosting the MDB Project Plaza 2024, organized by the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), through November 26–27 at the JW Marriott Hotel Seoul. The MDB Project Plaza was first launched in 2013 as a pan-ministerial, international event with the aim to provide Korean businesses with greater opportunities to participate in promising bid projects funded by multilateral development banks (MDBs) and to expand the scope of Korean businesses’ project collaboration with MDBs and other countries’ project owners. This year, the event will take off on the first day with an MDB project forum and briefing sessions on MDB trust funds and promising projects, followed by a one-on-one project consultation session the next day.  Representatives of the World Bank (WB), Asian Development Bank (ADB), Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), African Development Bank (AfDB), Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI), and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will be introducing the financing procedures and each MDB’s key projects. Meanwhile, the Export-Import Bank of Korea (KEXIM) will outline the Korean government-contributed MDB trust fund system and the ADB and WB will be giving an overview of the details and project bidding procedures regarding each organization’s trust funds. Relevant authorities from Indonesia, Ukraine, Montenegro, and Oman will also introduce the participation procedures and plan concerning their upcoming projects during the briefing session on promising MDB projects. The second day of the event will have Korean engineering and construction companies engage in one-on-one consultations with overseas MDB-funded project owners over 24 projects worth approximately $47.9 billion in areas like energy, environment, and transport infrastructure.   date2024-11-26

Korea and Mongolia enter 4th negotiating round for bilateral EPA

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) of the Republic of Korea announced today that the fourth official negotiating round for the Korea-Mongolia Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) will convene from November 26–29 in Seoul. Director General for FTA Negotiations Kwon Hye-jin and State Secretary of Mongolia’s Ministry of Economy and Development Batkhuu Idesh are each leading their respective delegation. In this fourth negotiating round, the two sides plan to make progress in 19 key areas including goods, services, investment, digital, government procurement, intellectual property, rules of origin, and economic cooperation. Rich in resources like rare earth elements and tungsten, Mongolia is currently seeking to diversify its trade network. Through the EPA, the Korean government is aiming to boost Mongolia-bound exports of Korea’s promising items and expand its services market presence and investment, while further stabilizing the supply chain of key materials for advanced industries by establishing a legal and institutional framework for the bilateral development and cooperation in mineral resources and energy. Trade Minister Inkyo Cheong attended the opening ceremony of the fourth official EPA negotiating round and asked both delegations to make concerted effort to swiftly conclude a mutually beneficial agreement.   date2024-11-26