Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

Amendments to the 「Enforcement Decree of the Environment-friendly Vehicles Act」approved at Cabinet Meeting

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced that the government has approved amendments to the “Enforcement Decree of the Act on Promotion of Development and Distribution of Environment-friendly Motor Vehicles” during a cabinet meeting on April 27. The revisions mean that ① public institutions will be required to purchase only environment-friendly vehicles (current requirements are 70% of all vehicles), and ② parking electric vehicles (EVs) at standard charging stations date2021-04-30

Korea’s retail sales move up 18.5% in March

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on April 26 that Korea’s overall retail sales in March saw a year-on-year growth of 18.5 percent. Sales at both offline and online retailers increased, up 21.7 percent and 15.2 percent, respectively. The Ministry releases monthly retail sales figures based on surveys of 26 major retailers. Half of them are physical retailers: three department store chains, three hypermarket chains, three convenience store chains, and four “super date2021-04-27

Korea’s ICT exports in March rise 8.9% to $17.4 billion

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on April 14 that outbound shipments of Korea’s information and communications technology (ICT) goods in March increased 8.9 percent to USD 17.4 billion.   Imports of ICT products totaled $10.9 billion, and the trade surplus stood at $6.5 billion.   Exports of all major items experienced growth in March.   Chip exports gained 7.9 percent to $9.6 billion and recorded growth for nine straight months. Both memory chips ( date2021-04-14

Korea's automobile output, domestic sales, and exports grow in Q1

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on April 13 that Korea’s automobile output, domestic sales, and exports in the first quarter of 2021 went up 12.2 percent, 11.3 percent, and 16.9 percent, respectively.    Meanwhile, for the month of March, output, domestic sales, and exports went down 9.5 percent, 0.9 percent, and 1.4 percent, respectively, due to a high base effect.   Total auto production in March by Korean automobile producers dipped 9.5 percent to date2021-04-13

FDI pledged to Korea amount to $4.7 billion in Q1

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on April 5 that foreign direct investments (FDIs) pledged to Korea in the first quarter of this year jumped 44.7 percent year-on-year to USD 4.7 billion. The FDIs that actually arrived in Korea over the same period also went up 42.9 percent to $4.3 billion. Despite difficult external circumstances amid COVID-19, FDI arrivals hit the record high quarterly value for the first quarter in history. Investment that was delayed due to the virus outb date2021-04-05

Korea’s March exports advance 16.6% to $53.8 billion

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on April 1 that Korea’s exports in March increased 16.6 percent to USD 53.8 billion. Imports grew 18.8 percent to $49.7 billion. The trade balance stood at a surplus of $4.2 billion, remaining positive for 11 straight months. The average daily exports went up 16.6 percent to $2.2 billion, hitting the record high value for the month of March in history. Exports posted growth for the fifth consecutive month, and the export value exceeded date2021-04-01

South Korea's secondary battery exports reach all-time highs for 5 years in a row

South Korea's secondary battery exports reach all-time highs for 5 years in a row date2021-03-30

Both offline and online retailers experience growth in February

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on March 25 that Korea’s overall retail sales in February rose 10.0 percent.   Sales at both brick-and-mortar stores and online stores expanded, up 14.3 percent and 5.5 percent, respectively.   The Ministry releases monthly retail sales figures based on surveys of 26 major retailers. Half of them are physical retailers: three department store chains, three hypermarket chains, three convenience store chains, and four “ date2021-03-25