Invest KOREA

According to Yonhap News,

(SEOUL=Yonhap News) The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) invited Japanese foreign-invested companies and investment promotion experts to a meeting on November 14 at the Sheraton Seoul Palace Gangnam Hotel to discuss how Japanese companies' investment momentum in Korea could be maintained.

The meeting hosted by Director Kim Yeong-sam of MOTIE's Trade and Investment Department was attended by representatives of Japanese companies investing in Korea's new industries of high-tech materials, robotics, and healthcare, as well as industry experts from private and national policy research institutes.

During the meeting, participants discussed ways to maintain the investment momentum of Japanese foreign-invested companies in Korea which has been recently starting to show signs of recovery.

Japan's investment in Korea grew from USD 190 million in 2016 Q3 to USD 360 million in 2016 Q4, USD 400 million in 2017 Q1, USD 410 million in 2017 Q2, USD 870 million in 2017 Q3, where the aggregated total for the first three quarters of this year is a 90.2 percent increase from the same period the previous year.

In order to maintain the investment cooperation between Korea and Japan in an age when an industrial paradigm shift is occurring that includes the fourth industrial revolution, the two countries first have to find a new value chain that combines the strengths of either side, Director Kim emphasized.

He also noted that as the digitalization of the manufacturing industry lies at the core of the fourth industrial revolution, Korea and Japan can utilize their strong foundations in manufacturing to develop one of the most successful collaborative partnerships in the world.

Participants suggested that high-tech materials, energy, healthcare and robotics have great potential for success should the two countries to carry out investment cooperation in those fields.

Based on the industries and business models found during the meeting to be promising for investment cooperation between Korea and Japan, MOTIE plans to draw up a list of potential investors and focus on attracting investment from those target companies.

bluekey@yna.co.kr

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