Korea Commerce-Funding Promotion Company (KOTRA) President Kang Kyung-sung on Thursday pledged to assist drive the nation’s exports to a report $1 trillion, vowing to diversify export routes and make the most of synthetic intelligence (AI) to assist outbound shipments.
Marking the primary anniversary of his tenure, Kang underscored that Korea has already achieved $579 billion in exports as of final month, the highest-ever determine for the time interval. He additionally famous that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) posted a report quarterly export quantity of $30.5 billion within the third quarter, highlighting their rising position in assembly the nationwide export goal.
Kang burdened that market, product and exporter diversification will probably be important to reaching the $1 trillion milestone. KOTRA, he mentioned, will additional shift Korea’s international export focus towards rising markets similar to India and Southeast Asian international locations.
He added that the company will assist increase the worldwide attain of Korea’s new development drivers — together with client items, protection methods and bio merchandise — whereas elevating the variety of exporting SMEs from final 12 months’s 96,000 to 100,000 inside this 12 months.
Kang additionally introduced that KOTRA will focus its capabilities on serving to Korea turn into one of many world’s prime three AI powerhouses, noting that the Ministry of Financial system and Finance final month chosen KOTRA as certainly one of 10 state-run companies designated to guide AI adoption.
“For Korea, this 12 months has been a 12 months of tariff negotiations with the US,” Kang mentioned on the press convention in Seoul. “Subsequent 12 months would be the 12 months we renew our international provide chains extra fiercely than ever.”
Vehicles for export fill the Port of Pyeongtaek in Gyeonggi Province, Nov. 2. Yonhap
He added that KOTRA is in search of to extend subsequent 12 months’s finances for provide chain stabilization by 30 billion received ($20 million) from this 12 months’s 4.6 billion received.
With nontariff obstacles anticipated to accentuate subsequent 12 months, Kang mentioned KOTRA will proceed to bolster financial safety by sharing trade-related info with home companies and offering tailor-made consultations.
Since Kang took workplace, KOTRA has expanded its international community to 131 places of work throughout 85 international locations. Reflecting on his first-year accomplishments, he famous that the company secured a report 96.3-billion-won finances for its countertariff company voucher program, which supported 2,248 exporters.
He added that SME exports reached $87 billion via September, up 5.8 % year-on-year, whereas client items exports — together with meals, magnificence gadgets, day by day requirements, vogue and prescription drugs — elevated 6.6 % year-on-year as of August, additionally a report.
“KOTRA is not simply selling commerce and funding,” Kang mentioned. “We at the moment are stabilizing provide chains, attracting international expertise in future industries, and fascinating in protection and financial diplomacy.”
He highlighted that Korea’s internet hosting of the Asia-Pacific Financial Cooperation (APEC) summit allowed KOTRA to attach 4,042 companies from 70 international locations with 6,900 Korean corporations, leading to a report 40,000 enterprise consultations final month alone.
On the Make investments Korea Summit late final month, the company additionally attracted $1.21 billion in international funding to the AI, semiconductor and future mobility sectors — its highest-ever quantity for a single funding promotion occasion.
