Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and Korea Federation of SMEs Discuss 35 Issues Including Trade and Energy

Sung Yun-mo, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Hyewon] The Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business (KSMB) will hold the "Meeting with the Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy and Small and Medium Business Owners" on the 30th to discuss key policy improvement tasks in the fields of industry, trade, and energy to strengthen the competitiveness of small and medium enterprises.

This is the second time Minister Sung Yun-mo of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy has visited the KSMB since taking office.

About 30 small and medium business representatives will attend, including Kim Jeong-tae, President of the Main Biz Association, Jeon Hyun-kyung, President of the IT Women Entrepreneurs Association, members of the Small and Medium Business Association Council, Kwon Hyuk-hong, Chairman of the Korea Paper Industry Cooperative, and Bae Jo-ung, Chairman of the Korea Ready-Mixed Concrete Industry Cooperative Federation.

During the meeting, various voices from the field will be conveyed, focusing on 35 pending issues related to industrial policy, SME support, standards and certification, and the energy sector.

In the fields of industrial policy and SME support, proposals include ▲activation of win-win cooperation technology development in the materials, parts, and equipment sector ▲expansion of CEPA countries to support overseas expansion of SMEs ▲support for classification of raw material recycling businesses as manufacturing ▲establishment of specialized training institutions for skilled workers in the root industry ▲expansion of large corporations' purchase of SME products in the domestic same industry.

In the standards and certification sector, proposals include ▲alleviating the increased burden on companies due to simultaneous auditing and testing by KS certification bodies ▲establishing a foundation for activating service group standards ▲preparing legal grounds for designating dedicated agencies for group standard tasks ▲expanding mutual cross-approval systems such as overseas safety certification and patents.

In the energy sector, proposals expected include ▲relaxation of registration standards for specialized mining reclamation operators in active mines ▲improvement of post-settlement practices by oil refiners ▲introduction of electricity rates exclusively for small and medium enterprises and mid-sized companies ▲support for the small LPG industry due to the spread of LNG supply in Jeju Island.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.