By Year-End, 78 Trillion Won in Trade Finance to Be Concentratedly Injected... "Full Effort to Maintain 'Export Plus'"

Joint Public-Private Export Expansion Strategy Meeting and Korea-Middle East Economic Cooperation Public-Private Promotion Committee
Discussion on Short-Term Export Expansion Strategies, Middle East Economic Cooperation Achievements, and Implementation Plans

The government has decided to implement a short-term export expansion strategy, including the concentrated injection of 78 trillion won in trade finance until the end of the year, to maintain the export growth trend that rebounded after 13 months. The goal is to achieve export figures of 110 billion dollars in November and December.

On the 8th, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy held the 2nd Public-Private Joint Export Expansion Review Meeting chaired by Minister Bang Beom-gyu to discuss this short-term export expansion strategy.

Exports, which had been declining for 12 consecutive months since October last year, turned to an increasing trend after 13 months by achieving a record high of 55.09 billion dollars in October this year. The trade balance also recorded a surplus for five consecutive months.

Minister Bang said, "The rebound in exports, the backbone of our economy, is very meaningful as it was achieved amid severe external conditions such as global economic slowdown due to high interest rates, and it laid the foundation for the typical lower growth in the first half and higher growth in the second half led by exports in our economy. It is time to further accelerate a strong export drive through Export One Team Korea, which involves both the public and private sectors."

The government will first provide concentrated support of 78 trillion won in trade finance through policy financial institutions such as the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation and the Export-Import Bank of Korea for all stages of export, from export contracts to shipment and payment receipt, until the end of the year. In addition, export insurance and guarantee fees for small and medium-sized enterprises and mid-sized companies will be uniformly reduced by 50% until June next year. To respond to the year-end peak consumption seasons such as China's Singles' Day and the U.S. Black Friday, the export insurance limits for a total of 33 countries including North America, the European Union (EU), and China will be expanded by 30%. To mitigate risks from recent exchange rate fluctuations such as yen depreciation and strong dollar, the foreign exchange fluctuation insurance limit will be temporarily increased by more than 50% until the first half of next year.

Marketing support to accelerate export companies' entry into overseas markets will also be significantly expanded. The export voucher program, which provides subsidies in the form of vouchers that can be used to select and utilize export support services such as overseas market research, education to strengthen export capabilities, assistance with preparing necessary documents related to export, trade, and local entry, and trade insurance and guarantees, will be doubled to 31.1 billion won next year. In addition, 86 export consultations and exhibitions will be held during the remaining period of this year to intensively support a total of 2,377 companies.

To support export market diversification, trade delegations will be dispatched to 10 promising export countries starting January next year, and dedicated support programs will be newly established for export tech companies, domestic companies, and export startups. To reduce the burden of overseas certification for export companies, overseas certification costs will be uniformly reduced by 20% until March next year. For new export growth engines such as secondary batteries and bio sectors, a 'Overseas Certification Fast Track' without express fees will be newly established to support rapid certification acquisition when export delivery is imminent.

Minister Bang emphasized, "The remaining two months of this year and the first half of next year are very important periods to create a major momentum for export expansion. Through the short-term export expansion strategy announced today, we will fully support export companies focusing on the three major areas of finance, marketing, and certification."

At the 2nd Korea-Middle East Economic Cooperation Public-Private Promotion Committee held subsequently, achievements and implementation plans for Middle East economic cooperation were discussed. Minister Bang said, "Following the state visit by the President last month, achievements worth 15.6 billion dollars in Saudi Arabia and 4.6 billion dollars in Qatar have been added, creating a new playing field worth a total of 79.2 billion dollars (about 107 trillion won) for our companies in the Middle East region. As the Korea-Middle East cooperation achievements expand both quantitatively and qualitatively, we plan to hold the 'Korea-Middle East Vision and Strategy Forum (tentative name)' within this year for systematic implementation and long-term cooperation strategy preparation, and to prepare the 'Korea-Middle East Cooperation Partnership Establishment Strategy (tentative name)' through a research project early next year."

Minister Kyoo Bang, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

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