Minister for Trade Dukgeun Ahn led the pan-ministerial exports support group on December 13 to ICONIX in Pangyo to inspect site operations and held the 13th exporters’ on-site conference.
The exports support group was launched following the first exports strategy meeting presided by President Yoon Suk-yeol on November 23, and the group participation has been widened to all major ministries.
Trade Minister Ahn congratulated the company ICONIX for winning this year’s “USD 10 million Exports Tower Award” for overseas distribution and exports of Korean animated series like “Pororo” and “Tayo the Little Bus.”
He assured that more support will be provided to exporters in content and services industries through several means, one of which is streamlining the issuance process of export results certificates.
Another is to open trade centers in the EU region and Japan for services sector exporters in order to diversify the support that is currently concentrated in China and Southeast Asia.
Others include organizing overseas exhibitions on Hallyu in conjunction with K-pop concerts and raising the exports voucher limit for services companies’ overseas marketing from the present KRW 50 million to 100 million won.
Following the site inspection, ICONIX and seven other Seoul and Gyeonggi region exporters participated in a conference where they discussed challenges, specifically requesting more specialized assistance in information and communications technology (ICT), content and bio. They also asked for support in manpower, education, financial assistance and export license application.
Addressing these needs, the Government and relevant institutions agreed to strengthen inter-ministerial collaboration to increase support for companies’ marketing activities, financing, manpower and R&D.
Minister Ahn mentioned that, on December 10, Korea’s exports value already surpassed the highest record of $644.4 billion, and is forecast to reach 680 billion by the end of the year. However, he stated concerns over the fourth quarter’s exports decline and trade deficit and affirmed that relevant ministries will work together to remove obstacles and enhance exports performance.
The pan-ministerial exports support group will continue to visit exporters nationwide to listen to various business challenges. Issues that were not immediately resolved on site will be continuously monitored and solved through the pan-ministerial “One-Stop Exports & Bid Support Group” launched on November 30.
Source: Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy