Invest KOREA

KOTRA held 'Global Investment Summit' by inviting global companies and local governments on July 6
Strengthen the establishment of supply chain by investment of parts, material, and equipment companies in Korea

Global Investment Summit, organized by KOTRA and hosted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy (MOTIE), was held at Shilla Hotel, Seoul on July 6.

The event was planned for the private, government, and academic sectors to reflect on the role of foreign investment attraction, and attract global companies who can practically strengthen the establishment of supply chain to respond to the trend of global supply chain reorganization driven by the △COVID-19 pandemic △Russia-Ukraine situation △Emerging new global protectionism, among others. Specifically, it consists of △Investment Agreement Signing Ceremony △Global Investment Forum △ Investment Cooperation Consulting sessions.

▶ (Investment Agreement Signing Ceremony) Attract global companies of the high-tech industries for stabilization of supply chain

Taking the Global Investment Summit as an opportunity, promising global companies in the high-tech industries have been invited to have investment cooperation signing ceremony to strengthen the establishment of domestic supply chain. KOTRA held the investment declaration ceremony with Edwards, a British company ranked No.1 in production of vacuum pump for semiconductor process, EMP Belstar, a US company who is the largest investor in Korea's energy logistics sector, and Vitesco Technologies, German's high-tech power train technology company. Applied Materials, the global no.1 semiconductor and display equipment producer, signed an investment agreement with the MOTIE and Gyeonggi Province.

▶ (Global Investment Forum) Discuss the role of foreign investment in the era of global supply chain reorganization

At the global investment forum held under the theme of 'Reorganization of the Global Supply Chain, and the Role of Foreign Investment', Richard Bolwijn, the Head of Investment Research in UNCTAD's Investment and Enterprise Division, predicted that "global FDI competition is going to be intensified, as the global economy is changing due to inflationary presusre and reorganization of supply chain." Moon Hwy-chang, Professor Emeritus at Graduate School of International Studies, Seoul National University, suggested the creation of 'advanced technology cluster' where the advanced technologies converge and develop, saying "if Korea establishes a good investment environment, it will rather be positive in attracting FDI".

Speakers' evaluation of 'Korea as an investment destination' continued. Jeffrey D. Lee, a partner of Northern Light Venture Capital (NLVC), a Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm in the US, evaluated Korea as a 'high-income advanced society', and Ericsson-LG CEO Hakan Cervell said, “Korea is a strategic market equipped with cutting-edge technology and the government's strong will for digitization," adding "We will keep investing in Korea, as it is in the interest of the company.".

▶ (Investment Cooperation Consulting) Based on demand from foreign-invested companies, one-one-one consulting for investment cooperation

The investment cooperation consulting, held as a connected event, was prepared to expand the domestic business of foreign-invested companies and connect the demand for investment cooperation, rising in the process of diversification, with domestic companies.

Major foreign-invested companies in the fields of semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, and hydrogen cars met with about 20 domestic innovative small and medium-sized enterprises, organizations, and universities to seek various investment cooperation opportunities such as equity investment, joint R&D, and industry-academic cooperation. In the consulting which took place both online and offline, a total of 10 foreign-invested companies participated including Sanofi Pasteur, a global pharmaceutical company looking for a joint R&D partner for new product development, Dow Korea, a semiconductor material company looking for a high-tech material technology company, and Valeo Korea, which want to operate an employment-linked program to foster technical manpower with universities.

Yu Jeoung-yeol, President of KOTRA, said, “In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, there have been diverse changes in the global investment environment, such as △global supply chain reorganization, △low-carbon economy, and △digital transformation,” adding "we will endeavor to attract foreign investment for national wealth creation to stabilize supply chain in preparation for global supply chain reorganization."



Source: Invest KOREA (July 7, 2022)