With Canadian Export Promotion, International Trade and Economic Development Minister Mary Ng leading a large-scale trade mission to Korea, high-level business leaders from both countries have come together to call for expanding cooperation in not only traditional industries such as energy but in cu
President Yoon Suk-yeol held a summit with Romanian President Klaus Iohannis at the Yongsan presidential office on April 23 to discuss bilateral cooperation. It is the first bilateral summit in Korea in 16 years since 2008. Yoon visited the Lithuanian capital Vilnius for a North Atlantic Treaty Orga
The number of affiliates belonging to Korea’s conglomerates crossed 3,000 for the first time in 2023. The increase is the result of business diversification in response to an unstable global business environment, but the increase has generated many negative side effects.As of May 2023, the number of
Seoul is considering establishing an international school in the international financial center of Yeouido in Seoul. The idea is to create a comfortable environment for foreigners to live in Seoul in order to attract more overseas investment.The Seoul Metropolitan Government will launch a service to
The opposition party’s landslide victory in the 22nd general election is expected to disrupt the Korean government’s planned new trade strategy. A plan to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) which requires parliamentary approval, is likely to be pus
In 2023, about 20 percent of the 1.43 million resident foreigners in Korea obtained Korean language proficiency test ratings. The biggest share was taken by international students studying in Korea among them. The largest number of them earned a Level 4 rating.According to the results of the 2023 Im
The collective net worth of Korea’s 50 Richest on the 2024 Forbes list rose slightly to US$115 billion from $106 billion, amid the country’s global chipmaking ambitions. The complete list can be found at www.forbes.com/korea, as well as in the April/May issue of Forbes Asia and the May issue of Forb
The finance ministers of South Korea and Japan jointly announced that they could take appropriate measures to address recent volatility in the foreign exchange markets, signaling a readiness for “verbal intervention.” It appears that South Korea and Japan are joining hands to engage in a “currency w
Finance ministers of Korea, the United States, and Japan will meet for the first time ever in Washington, D.C., the United States on April 17.The Ministry of Strategy and Finance announced on April 16 that Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Choi Sang-mok will leave for the United States t
The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) escalated tensions in February by adding an additional six Chinese companies to its blacklist, following the earlier inclusion of eight companies. With these new additions, the Biden administration has now blacklisted a total of
A forecast suggests that the proportion of foreigners in the domestic population will reach 5.7%, based on median estimates, in 20 years. With a rapid decline anticipated in the native population, it is projected that one out of every ten working-age individuals will be a foreigner.On April 11, Stat
Minister Ahn Deok-geun of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy is embarking on a trip to the United States ahead of the announcement of the nuclear power plant operator selection in the Czech Republic.The U.S. court has dismissed the lawsuit filed by Westinghouse against Korea Hydro & Nuclear
Amid astronomical subsidies being poured into the semiconductor industry by countries like the United States and Japan, the South Korean government has decided to explore domestic investment incentives. There’s speculation that discussions on ‘semiconductor subsidy cash support’ could materialize, g
During his visit to the United States, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen met with China’s “second-in-command,” Premier Li Qiang, raising concerns once again over China’s issue of overproduction. Premier Li responded by stating that the low-cost production of solar panels and electric vehicles, which t
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choi Sang-mok has highlighted the need for a new growth model as South Korea transitions from a beneficiary of China’s growth to a competitor, according to a report by the Financial Times (FT) on April 8.In a recent interview with FT, Deputy
Recent opinion polls suggest that former President Donald Trump is leading in the race in swing states among potential candidates for the upcoming November U.S. presidential election, raising concerns about trade pressure from the United States. During his tenure, former President Trump considered t
Gyeongbuk Governor Lee Cheol-woo had an in-depth discussion on various mutual cooperation measures including the Saemaul movement between the two countries with Sri Lankan Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena at the Gyeongbuk Provincial Office on April 3.During the visit, which was attended by key gove
The government plans to invest 500 billion won over the next five years in five additional specialized complexes for materials, parts, and equipment, aiming to develop them into core bases for the supply chain. Space, aerospace, defense, and hydrogen are newly added as strategic technology sectors,
Korea’s inheritance tax is too high compared to G7 countries, leading to the Korea discount (the undervaluation of the Korean stock market) and discouraging investment, according to a proposal to adjust it to a reasonable level in this year’s tax law revision.“Over the past 30 years, G7 countries ha
As the polarization of wages between employees of large and small companies has become a big social issue amid concerns about low growth, attention has been focused on the wages of those at large companies rising rapidly every year.The Korea Enterprises Federation (KEF) has sent out recommendation l