Government to Announce Export Competitiveness Enhancement Strategy by Month-End... "Responding to Slowdown in Export Growth"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Sejong=Reporter Dongwoo Lee] The government will announce a comprehensive strategy to strengthen export competitiveness by the end of this month. This is to prepare countermeasures amid growing concerns that the export growth rate may slow down due to the widening trade deficit and rising exchange rates.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on the 24th that it held an 'Export Situation Review Meeting' at the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation in Jongno-gu, Seoul, chaired by Andeokgeun, Director General of Trade Negotiations, to discuss measures to revitalize exports in the second half of the year and improve the trade balance.

Director General Ahn said, "Exports have maintained an increase for 21 consecutive months until last month, but the import growth rate has exceeded the export growth rate due to expanded energy imports, resulting in consecutive deficits. Since June, the export growth rate has also dropped to single digits, and the export growth of semiconductors, the largest export item, has slowed, continuing a severe export situation."

He added, "At the end of August, we will announce a comprehensive export competitiveness enhancement strategy covering industrial competitiveness strengthening and stabilization of energy import demand. We will establish effective measures by reflecting the export industry's suggestions and difficulties gathered from the industrial field as much as possible."

The government plans to support export activities and resolve difficulties of domestic industries in the short term through trade finance, logistics, overseas marketing, etc., to revitalize exports in the second half of the year, and in the mid-to-long term, to strengthen export industry competitiveness through upgrading key industries, fostering promising export industries, and stabilizing supply chains.

The meeting included export support organizations such as the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), Korea Trade Insurance Corporation, and Korea International Trade Association, as well as industry associations from sectors including semiconductors, refining, steel, and automobiles. Industry associations forecast that it will be difficult for export performance in the second half to maintain the high growth rate seen in the first half, considering the recent slowdown in global economic growth.

The semiconductor industry predicted that the export growth rate in the second half would slow due to supply chain risks, weak IT demand caused by inflation, and falling memory prices. The steel industry anticipated a negative impact on exports as steel prices decline amid stagnation in global steel demand.

Director General Ahn urged, "When forming and dispatching trade delegations for trade and industrial cooperation with emerging markets such as the Middle East and Eastern Europe in the future, the export industry should actively participate to achieve tangible cooperation results."

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