KOTRA opens office in Slovakia, Serbia

Kim Jae-hong, fourth from right, CEO of the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), poses with Rastislav Chovanec, third from right, state secretary of Slovakia’s Ministry of Economy, and others during a ceremony to mark the opening of KOTRA’s office in Bratislava, Slovakia, Monday. / Courtesy of KOTRA

By Lee Hyo-sik

The Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) has opened two offices in Slovakia and Serbia in a bid to support the growing number of Korean companies looking to make inroads into rapidly-growing Eastern Europe.

The opening of the two offices will increase the number of the agency’s overseas branches to 125 in 85 countries.

The offices will collect a wide range of information on government policies and market conditions in the two countries, and offer this information to domestic firms seeking to export products or to build plants there, KOTRA said.

“Slovakia and Serbia are emerging markets with huge growth potential,” KOTRA CEO Kim Jae-hong said during a ceremony to mark the opening of the firm’s office in Bratislava, Slovakia, Monday.

“I believe Korean companies can find many lucrative business opportunities in these two rapidly growing economies. Using our two newly-opened offices, KOTRA will extend all the support to companies that want to do business in Eastern Europe,” he said.

Slovakia and Serbia will grow into an attractive consumer market, Kim said, calling on local consumer goods makers to establish a presence there.

“In addition, these two countries can serve as a strategic production post for domestic carmakers and other companies targeting the European market. Already, many global automakers and electronics makers have set up production facilities,” the CEO said.

Slovakia and Serbia have geographic merit for domestic companies to advance into European markets, coupled with affluent human resources.

Major global companies MS, Kia Motors and Fiat are utilizing the two nations as production bases as the governments have been actively pushing for industrial diversification and manufacturing of high value added products.