• Trade News
  
  SOUTH KOREAN PRIME
  MINISTER AND
  WISCONSIN
  GOVERNOR
  DISCUSS FTA
•    South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nakyon met with the governor of the U.S. state of Wisconsin on September 15 and discussed trade and economic cooperation, including the free trade pact between the two countries.
     Gov. Scott Walker visited South Korea with an economic mission of about 20 people that included government officials and business leaders in the state. It was his first visit to the country.
     During the meeting, Lee noted the steady development of cooperative relations in trade and other areas between South Korea and Wisconsin. Lee also asked for Walker's support for the free trade agreement between
  
• the two countries, saying the deal has been beneficial to both nations.
     Walker said that South Korea is Wisconsin's eight-largest trade partner and expressed the hope that his visit will help further deepen cooperation not only in the manufacturing and agricultural sectors but also in the cultural and educational fields.
     The governor also said that trade between South Korea and Wisconsin has been on the rise since the FTA went into effect in 2012. He added that Wisconsin has benefited a lot from the agreement and will try to use the trade pact to move relations between the two countries further forward.

• ASIAN & EUROPEAN
  MINISTERS DISCUSS
  TRADE ISSUES
  IN SEOUL
•    On September 21, economic leaders of Asia and Europe gathered in Seoul for the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) to discuss ways to tackle the rising protectionism in trade and to cooperate for the next industrial revolution. This was the first ministerial meeting to take place in 12 years.
     Under the theme, "Reconnecting Asia-Europe: Innovative Partnership for Inclusive Prosperity," the meeting provided an opportunity for Asia and Europe to discuss ways to promote trade and investment, as well as to
  
• come up with joint responses to rising protectionism.
     Trade has been a major driver for economic growth in ASEM partners, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) said, noting ASEM's share of global trade increased from 54 percent in 1995 to 64 percent in 2015.
     The policymakers also touched on the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the new climate framework under the Paris Agreement aimed at reducing carbon emissions.

• Government & Policy
  
  S.KOREA'S FINANCE
  MINISTER MEETS WITH
  MOODY'S LEADERSHIP
•    In a meeting with Moody’s officials, South Korea's top economic policymaker said that rising geopolitical tensions sparked by North Korea are having a limited impact on Asia's fourth-largest economy, and the Seoul government is ready to cope with possible risks.
     Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon made the comment in a meeting with Richard Cantor, chief risk officer of Moody's Corp., and Robert Fauber, president of Moody's Investors Service, held in New York on September 19
  
• (U.S.time).
     Kim said Seoul has a system in place to take appropriate and timely measures and is in close policy coordination with the U.S., as well as Japan, China and other nations.
     Despite heightened tensions, Moody's said in its latest report that the possibility of military conflict on the Korean Peninsula is still very low and will likely not trigger a sudden outflow of foreign capital from the South Korean market in the short-term.
  

• MOON MEETS WITH
  IMF CHIEF,STRESSES
  IMPORTANCE OF
  INCOME-LED
  GROWTH
•    On September 11, South Korean President Moon Jae-in outlined his economic policy during a meeting with International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Christine Lagarde. Moon stated that his government’s income-led growth policy is in line with the IMF's call for a balance between domestic demand and exports. Moon also asked the IMF to make policy recommendations and expand research so as to help realize inclusive growth.
  
•    Lagarde said that economic growth is further strengthened and becomes more sustainable when its benefits are widely shared. She also praised Seoul's policy for conforming to the kind of inclusive growth that the lending agency has called for. She said that the South's policy is expected to lower entrance barriers for promising new startups while preventing excessive market dominance by conglomerates, which will improve productivity and contribute to inclusive growth.