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Kaher Kazem, Vice Chairman of GM Shanghai Automotive and former President of General Motors (GM) Korea, stated on the 23rd (local time) that "while labor-management issues occupied most of my work when I was working in Korea, there are no labor-management problems in China, allowing me to focus entirely on management. This is the biggest difference," and pointed out that "the pace of innovation in the Chinese automotive industry and the establishment of electric vehicle and battery supply chains is much faster than in Korea."

The Korea International Trade Association (KITA) announced on the 24th that Vice Chairman Jeong Manki visited GM Shanghai Automotive in China the previous day and held a meeting with Vice Chairman Kazem. Kazem said, "Efforts to secure Korea's competitiveness, such as expanding the adoption of global standards, must be further strengthened."

Jung Manki, Vice Chairman of the Korea International Trade Association (right), is seen greeting Kaher Kazem, GM Shanghai Automotive Vice Chairman, on the 23rd (local time).
[Photo by Korea International Trade Association]

After meeting with Vice Chairman Kazem, Vice Chairman Jeong chaired a roundtable meeting of Korean companies based in Shanghai. The meeting was attended by 10 representatives from Korean companies based in Shanghai, including LS Electric, Hyundai Nevis, and Line Friends.

Participants said that the phenomenon of relocating production facilities from China to other countries, known as "de-Chinaization," occurred not because of political conflicts between the U.S. and China but because Korean companies' competitiveness was outpaced by Chinese companies. KITA reported, "The businesspeople attending the roundtable diagnosed that the fundamental cause of Korean companies leaving China is due to the rapid increase in Chinese technological capabilities and competitiveness, which weakened the relative competitiveness of our companies, rather than political factors such as U.S.-China conflicts."

Mr. A said, "There are now almost no fields where Korea leads China technologically," adding, "Most Chinese companies believe that China will surpass Korea in semiconductors within 3 to 5 years." Mr. B said, "Sixteen years ago, most of the work of Korean consulting firms related to China was supporting Korean companies' investments in China, assisting about 25 trillion won in investments annually," and added, "Recently, we have been supporting Korean companies in business liquidation, withdrawal, and relocation to third countries related to leaving China."

Jung Manki, Vice Chairman of the Korea International Trade Association (first on the right), is visiting GM Shanghai Automobile and inspecting the site.
[Photo by Korea International Trade Association]

KITA reported, "Participants expressed concerns about exaggerated and distorted perceptions of China within Korea." Mr. C said, "Due to uncertainties from U.S.-China conflicts and the spread of anti-China sentiment domestically, many corporate top executives are giving up on investment decisions in China," adding, "This is regrettable as it goes against the trend of major companies from advanced countries such as the European Union (EU) and the United States increasing their investments in China."

Vice Chairman Jeong said, "China is a market we can never give up," and added, "KITA plans to actively propose the removal of regulations to the government and the National Assembly by identifying domestic legislative regulations that differ from international standards in cooperation with regulatory academic societies in the future."

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