Chairman Christopher Koo of the Korea International Trade Association called for taking a leap forward after overcoming a crisis with a sense of pride and passion in which a trade powerhouse has been built for 60 years.
In his New Year’s message, released earlier, KITA Chairman Koo said, “Whenever our trade was faced with a crisis in the past, the Korean economy achieved a miracle by demonstrating its potential and capabilities, surprising the world.”
“There are lots of troubles surrounding our trade, such as major countries’ intensive tightening, China’s low growth, and the protracted Russia-Ukraine war,” he said.
Chairman Koo said, “Product trade and investments have slowed down in the wake of the retreat of globalization, lasting for the past 30 years, and global competition landscape has undergone dramatic changes in the course of implementing digital transformation and carbon neutrality, and new trade barriers are to be made.”
“Even though these changes come as great threats, if we go one step ahead with a brave and challenging spirit, it will serve as an opportunity to advance technology and innovation and open a new future of the Korean economy,” Chairman Koo said.
KITA will concentrate on easing complaints and grievances that exporting companies will experience in 2023 and ramp up future export foundation and expand the scope of exports, he said.
Chairman Koo said 2022 was a watershed year in which the business logged $600 billion for the second straight year, the best-ever trade volume and ranking sixth - the highest-ever - in global exports.
Chairman Koo said the nation raised its standing as a manufacturing powerhouse on the back of brisk growth of new export industries, such as EVs and battery sectors, and had a more advanced export structure, and solid export growth of mainstay exports items, such as semiconductors and automobiles amid the sagging global economy.
KITA Executive Vice Chairman Jeong Marn-ki presides over the first meeting related to each business’s emergency steps to overcome a difficult situation and expand exports at Trade Tower on Jan. 5. (Photos: KITA)
Private and Gov’t Sectors Join Forces to Prop Up Export Momentum
The Korea International Trade Association said KITA Executive Vice Chairman Jeong Man-ki would convene the first meeting on Jan. 5 of each business to take emergency steps to overcome a difficult situation and expand exports.
The meeting is designed to take steps to improve exporting conditions, which are exacerbated due to multiple crises and rising uncertainties of the global economy despite the nation’s achieving the best-ever export volume last year.
Officials from KITA, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, 17 business associations, industry alliance forums will participate in the meeting along with representatives of the private sectors, and participants.
They will explore ways of raising export competitiveness by analyzing grievances and complaints export companies experience. Suggestions will be presented to the government.
The meeting will discuss the impacts on Korean companies in the wake of the localization of supply chains by major countries, such as the United States and China on topics such as automobile, automotive parts and secondary battery businesses.
KITA plans to hold meetings on five occasions to take stock of the exporting situation of both mainstay exports, such as automobiles, shipbuilding and steel industries and promising industries, including nuclear power, defense and plant engineering sectors.
KITA Executive Vice Chairman Jeong said, “KITA takes it seriously to see the export conditions worsen due to continued multiple crises and uncertainties of the global economy and have a heavy responsibility to solve trade deficit and sagging exports to make a leap forward.”
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