Choo Kyung-ho: "792 Billion USD Achieved in Summit Diplomacy... Follow-up Measures in 5 Key Areas Underway"

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choo Kyung-ho is presiding over the '237th Ministerial Meeting on External Economic Affairs' held at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on October 31, delivering opening remarks.

Choo Kyung-ho, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, emphasized on the 31st, "We will thoroughly implement follow-up measures in five key areas to ensure that the $79.2 billion achievement from summit diplomacy leads to a new Middle East boom that the public can feel."

At the Foreign Economic Ministers' Meeting held at the Government Seoul Office on the same day, Deputy Prime Minister Choo stated, "Through President Yoon's visits and high-level exchanges with the Middle East's BIG 3 countries?the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, and Qatar?we have created a vast arena for our economy that encompasses traditional cooperation sectors and new industries."

The five key areas identified by Deputy Prime Minister Choo are energy, infrastructure, new industries, export base, and investment cooperation. In the energy sector, the government will implement a joint crude oil stockpiling project of 5.3 million barrels with Saudi Arabia by 2028 to ensure stable energy supply. Plans are also underway to follow up on the hydrogen memorandum of understanding for clean energy cooperation.

Additionally, to facilitate large-scale orders through infrastructure cooperation, a financial cooperation agreement will be signed between the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation and the Saudi sovereign wealth fund. A financial support memorandum of understanding between the Export-Import Bank of Korea and UAE export credit insurance is also planned.

The government further explained that through intergovernmental economic dialogues, it will support Korean companies' entry into new industries such as advanced manufacturing, digital technology, smart farms, and cosmetics. Efforts to attract additional investment will also continue.

Recent overseas order achievements and future key tasks were also discussed. The government explained that overseas orders reached $23.5 billion by the third quarter of this year, marking the highest performance since 2015.

Deputy Prime Minister Choo expressed concern, saying, "Our economy is showing signs of recovery with visible improvements in manufacturing production and exports, leading to expanding signs of economic rebound. However, external uncertainties persist due to heightened tensions in the Middle East such as the Israel-Hamas conflict, increased volatility in international oil prices, and prolonged monetary tightening concerns in major countries."

He added, "The government will maintain heightened vigilance in monitoring external risk factors while focusing on stabilizing prices and the livelihood economy."

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