Choo Kyung-ho: "We Will Make Every Effort to Fundamentally Improve the Export Structure"

Emergency Economic Ministers' Meeting and Export Investment Measures Meeting

[Asia Economy Reporter Joo Sang-don] Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choo Kyung-ho stated on the 16th, "The government will make every effort with responsibility across all ministries to fundamentally improve the export structure by discovering promising export items, diversifying markets, and strengthening service export capabilities."

On this day, Deputy Prime Minister Choo presided over the 'Emergency Economic Ministers' Meeting and Export Investment Measures Meeting' at the Government Seoul Office and made these remarks.

He identified energy, semiconductors, and China as accounting for 95% of the recent trade deficit causes. Deputy Prime Minister Choo diagnosed, "Despite the rise in energy prices, imports of winter energy such as oil and gas have not decreased. The decline in semiconductor exports, which account for about 20% of total exports, is intensifying due to the global economic slowdown, and the effect of China's reopening still requires time."

Deputy Prime Minister Choo emphasized that the entire Republic of Korea must unite efforts to advance the timing of trade balance improvement. He added, "I earnestly request the National Assembly to urgently pass the amendment to the Restriction of Special Taxation Act in the February session to strengthen global competitiveness and activate investment in national strategic industries such as semiconductors. To reduce energy imports, nationwide cooperation is essential. We will actively promote a strong energy-saving campaign while enhancing energy efficiency improvements and saving incentives."

The meeting also discussed ▲ trends and countermeasures for agricultural and food exports ▲ trends and countermeasures for fisheries food exports ▲ restructuring and fostering directions for regional key industries.

Deputy Prime Minister Choo explained, "The government will make every effort to support exports by maximizing opportunities such as the Korean Wave content boom and the growing global interest in our foods like ramen, fermented sauces, and gim (seaweed). We will announce specific strategies to expand agricultural and fisheries food exports soon after discussions at today's meeting."

Regarding the restructuring and fostering directions for regional key industries, he said, "It is urgent to create a regional innovation ecosystem centered on companies utilizing local technologies and resources. Accordingly, the government will reorganize the regional key industries currently fostered in 14 metropolitan cities and provinces around national strategic technologies and the New Growth 4.0 strategy, and intensively nurture regional small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to lead this."

To this end, the government plans to boldly adjust industries among the current 48 regional key industries that show insufficient production and employment creation effects. Additionally, 19 future new industries such as semiconductors, secondary batteries, and Urban Air Mobility (UAM) will be newly selected, expanding and reorganizing the regional key industries to a total of 60.

For the reorganized key industries, support will be provided as enterprise-specific packages for technology development, commercialization, and workforce training to secure new technologies. Furthermore, programs supporting cooperative technology development among companies will be introduced to strengthen cooperation networks among upstream and downstream related companies, and financial incentives considering regional performance will also be expanded. The government also plans to legislate the definition, selection criteria, and procedures for regional key industries, and establish an industrial fostering foundation by enhancing governance centered on local governments and regional technoparks to nurture regional SMEs.

Choo Kyung-ho, Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs and Minister of Economy and Finance.

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