Argentina has promised to provide full support to South Korean companies seeking to expand their raw material development as Seoul wants deeper ties in the economy and trade, officials said Friday.
South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo arrived in Argentina on Thursday for an official visit, as Seoul seeks to deepen economic cooperation with the resource-rich Latin American nation.
Han’s visit came as the two nations mark the 60th anniversary of establishing diplomatic ties.
Han held talks with Argentina’s President Alberto Fernandez and discussed measures to improve cooperation in various fields, including economic security, according to Han’s office.
Argentina boasts the world’s third-largest lithium resources and is the world’s fourth-biggest producer of lithium. South Korea imported about 40 percent of its corn and some 33 percent of its soybean oil from Argentina last year.
POSCO, South Korea’s top steelmaker, plans to spend US$830 million in Argentina to produce 25,000 tons of lithium annually and expand the annual production to 100,000 tons by 2028.
During talks with Fernandez, Han asked him to support South Korea’s bid to host the 2030 World Expo in the southeastern port city of Busan.
A group of senior business executives, including POSCO President Jeong Tak and Hyundai Motor Vice President Kim Dong-wook, have been accompanying Han on his trip in order to drum up support for Busan’s bid for the expo.
Argentina is the final leg of Han’s three-nation trip that has already taken him to Chile and Uruguay.
Source: Yonhap News Agency