Lee Hyo-sik is Finance Desk editor at The Korea Times. He manages finance-related stories on macroeconomics, banks, stocks, bonds, crypto etc. He is passionate about covering what's happening in Korea's financial industry and explaining it to both Korean and non-Korean readers. You can reach him at leehs@koreatimes.co.kr. Your insights and feedbacks are always appreciated.
KOTRA to hold China export fair
By Lee Hyo-sik
The Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) will hold an export fair in Seoul next week for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) looking to sell their goods to Chinese consumers.
The event will make the best use of the terms of the Korea-China free trade agreement (FTA) ― which is expected to turn the world’s second-largest economy into Korea’s largest foreign market ― before the pact goes into effect, KOTRA said.
The state-run trade promotion agency said Thursday that in cooperation with the Korea Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corp., it will organize the “Korea-China FTA Business Plaza” at the KINTEX in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, on April 27.
More than 300 Chinese companies are expected to attend the upcoming fair seeking to buy a wide range of made-in-Korea products, including consumer goods, agricultural products and IT parts. They include China’s largest private enterprise, Suning Group, online search engine Baidu, smartphone maker Huawei, home shopping channel operator Happigo and state-run pharmaceutical firm Sinopharm.
KOTRA said about 1,500 Korean SMEs will be at the event looking to sign supply deals with Chinese buyers.
“Korea should make all-out efforts to make China its second domestic market by taking advantage of the Korea-China FTA,” KOTRA CEO Kim Jae-hong said. “To do so, domestic companies, particularly SMEs, should make inroads into the world’s fastest-growing consumer market. This is why we organize the Business Plaza to enable local firms to have face-to-face meetings with Chinese buyers.”
Suning Group, which operates discount stores and shopping malls across China, looks to secure high-quality, innovative consumer products from Korean manufacturers, KOTRA said. Made-in-Korea consumer goods have become popular among Chinese consumers thanks to their favorable brand images and “hallyu,” the Korean cultural wave sweeping the globe.
“Baidu is seeking to find suppliers from Korea. If selected, companies can market their goods through the Chinese search engine’s vast online sales platform,” a KOTRA spokesman said. “A dozen Chinese food-product retailers will attend the fair to strike supply contracts with local food producers. The fair will provide local businesses with golden opportunities to tap into the Chinese market.”
On April 28, KOTRA plans to hold business counseling sessions in Daejeon, Daegu and Gwangju for SMEs based outside Seoul and Gyeonggi Province.