Ministry of SMEs and Startups to Operate Hotline for New Coronavirus in Wuhan, Shandong, and Guangdong

On the 4th, travelers at Incheon International Airport Terminal 1, where a dedicated immigration area for passengers arriving from China has been established, are entering while wearing masks. / Yeongjongdo - Photo by Kim Hyunmin kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Hyewon] The Ministry of SMEs and Startups has established a 'hotline' with small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that have entered the Chinese market. This is to identify detailed statuses and difficulties faced by Korean SMEs and small business owners operating in key regions such as Wuhan city and Hubei province, as well as Shandong and Guangdong provinces, in relation to the novel coronavirus infection (Wuhan pneumonia). However, since the damage status of companies operating in China has not yet been identified, the timing and methods of support will be specified in the future.

On the 3rd, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups held a briefing and announced that the hotline will be operated through five export business incubators (BI) in China centered on the China cooperation officer, 23 overseas private network connections, and the Korean residents' association network in China.

The Ministry identified through the local Korean residents' association that there are five Korean SMEs and eleven small business owners in Wuhan. Among them, direct calls were made to two companies to receive damage reports. Company K, a local automobile parts manufacturer, had six out of nine Korean employees return to Korea, and Company L, a manufacturer of optical communication parts, had all two Korean employees return. Both places are currently suspended due to the Lunar New Year holiday. There are disruptions in the supply of raw materials from Taiwan, and some are being procured domestically, but it is currently difficult to distinguish whether this is due to the novel coronavirus or the Chinese Lunar New Year holiday.

No Yongseok, Director of Global Growth Policy at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, said, "The suspension of operations continues due to the return of Korean employees and the extension of the Lunar New Year holiday, raising concerns about sales decline, but it is difficult to determine whether the damage is directly caused by the novel coronavirus or indirectly by the holiday, so we are continuing to receive damage reports." He added, "In the future, detailed preparations such as determining whether companies are affected in cooperation with related agencies like the Ministry of Economy and Finance will be necessary."

The Ministry plans to conduct detailed investigations not only in Wuhan city and Hubei province, which are directly affected by the novel coronavirus, but also in regions with many Korean companies such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chongqing, and Qingdao. Additionally, to overcome this situation, a 'Novel Coronavirus Response Task Force (TF)' will be operated, and to minimize uncertainty, regular briefings related to the novel coronavirus will be held daily at 2 p.m. starting from the 3rd.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups plans to support small business owners expected to suffer damage from the novel coronavirus with 20 billion KRW in business stabilization funds and to lower the special guarantee rate by 0.2 percentage points on 100 billion KRW worth of special guarantees through regional credit guarantee institutions.

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