"Korea-China Supply Chains Directly Linked to Korean Companies' Production and Exports"... Trade Ministry Holds 'Supply Chain and Industrial Complex Working-Level Meeting' with China's Commerce Ministry

Agreed to maintain regular communication to facilitate smooth imports of key items
Develop Korea-China industrial complexes into practical hubs for trade and investment cooperation

Trade authorities from South Korea and China held working-level meetings to manage supply chains between the two countries in a stable manner. Both sides agreed on the need for regular communication to ensure the smooth supply of key items and create a predictable business environment.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said it would hold the "Fourth Korea-China Supply Chain Hotline Meeting" and the "Sixth Korea-China Industrial Complex Working-Level Meeting" on October 13 in Huizhou, Guangdong Province, China, with Bae Junhyeong, director-general of the ministry's Trade Cooperation Bureau, and Wang Liping, director-general of the Department of Asian Affairs, serving as chief delegates.

A ministry official said, "Bilateral trade between Korea and China reached $263.1 billion from January to August this year, up 51.3% from the same period last year, while South Korea's exports to China also rose 42.7% to $117.7 billion." The official added, "With bilateral trade continuing to grow this year, the meetings were arranged to support business activities by stably managing supply chains between the two countries and to identify new opportunities for cooperation through Korea-China industrial complexes."

The Korea-China Supply Chain Hotline Meeting is an intergovernmental consultative body established to promote cooperation on stabilizing supply chains between the two countries. It has been held regularly each year since the first meeting in Seoul in December 2023. Through this channel, the two sides have reviewed supply chain trends for key items needed for industrial production, including not only items subject to export controls but also urea and wire harnesses. They have also discussed related issues as needed to manage bilateral supply chains stably.

At this meeting, South Korea also asked the Chinese government to continue providing attention and cooperation so that Korean companies could secure key items from China without disruption. The two sides also discussed ways to cooperate in creating a predictable business environment for Korean companies operating in China. They agreed to continue using the hotline as a regular channel for bilateral supply chain cooperation, reviewing supply chain trends for key items on a regular basis while maintaining a system for prompt consultations when issues arise.

Following the Korea-China summit in Gyeongju last November and the signing of the "Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Strengthening Korea-China Industrial Complex Cooperation" in January this year in the presence of the two countries' leaders, the two sides have stepped up investment cooperation in Saemangeum. In September, an investment delegation comprising around 20 Chinese companies visited Saemangeum to assess its investment environment. At this working-level meeting, the two sides focused on ways to improve investment conditions at their respective industrial complexes so that companies' interest could lead to actual market entry and investment.

The trade authorities of the two countries shared information on support systems and incentives at the Saemangeum and Huizhou industrial complexes, and discussed ways to expand support for companies entering industrial complexes in the other country. They also discussed improving access to logistics infrastructure between the complexes and making investment procedures more convenient, agreeing to better support companies' expansion into the complexes and the growth of trade and investment between them.

The two sides also agreed to continue identifying new investment demand next year, including by sending an additional Chinese investment delegation, and to develop Korea-China industrial complexes, including Saemangeum, into practical hubs for trade and investment cooperation that connect companies seeking to enter each other's markets.

Bae Junhyeong, director-general of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy's Trade Cooperation Bureau, said, "Supply chains between Korea and China are directly linked to the production and exports of Korean companies, so it is important to manage them stably on an ongoing basis." He added, "We will continue to communicate as needed through the hotline on supply chain issues, while holding follow-up discussions with China to ensure that industrial complex cooperation centered on Saemangeum delivers tangible results for businesses."

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