KCCI Hosts Korea-Turkey Business Forum... Agree to Cooperate on New Industries

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] The economic sectors of Korea and Turkey have agreed to expand cooperation not only in infrastructure construction but also in new industries such as electric vehicles, medical care, and smart cities.

The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), together with the Turkish Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEIK), the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (Minister Sung Yun-mo), and the Turkish Ministry of Trade (Minister Ruhsar Pekcan), jointly held the "Korea-Turkey Business Forum" online on the 22nd.

This event, organized to discuss ways to revitalize Korea-Turkey economic cooperation, was originally scheduled to be held in conjunction with a Turkish presidential visit in the first half of the year. However, due to the postponement of the visit caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, it was conducted online.

On the Korean side, attendees included Park Yong-man, Chairman of KCCI; Sung Yun-mo, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy; Gong Young-woon, President of Hyundai Motor Company (Chairman of the Korean Cooperation Committee); Lee Hyuk-jae, Executive Director of Celltrion; and Yoon Cheol-jin, Group Leader of SK Planet. On the Turkish side, attendees included Nail Olpak, Chairman of DEIK; Ruhsar Pekcan, Minister of Trade; and Ali Kibar, Chairman of Kibar Group (Chairman of the Turkish Cooperation Committee).

In his opening remarks, Park Yong-man, Chairman of KCCI, said, "Korea and Turkey are traditional allies with a strong bond." He added, "We expect continued orders for large-scale infrastructure construction such as high-speed rail infrastructure, airports, energy, and hospitals under Turkey's 100th anniversary economic development project, 'VISION 2023'." He also emphasized the cooperative relationship by stating, "Turkey has recently been focusing on investments in new industries such as electric vehicles, bio, and smart cities, making it an important partner for Korea's digital and green new deal policies."

Sung Yun-mo, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, promised, "The government ministries will actively support the continuous discovery of symbolic cooperation cases between the two countries, such as the construction of the ?anakkale Bridge and vehicle production at Hyundai Motor's ?zmit plant."

Ruhsar Pekcan, Turkish Minister of Trade, said, "Since the Korea-Turkey Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was signed in 2013, trade volume has increased by more than 20%, and over the past seven years, many achievements have been made through cooperation between companies from both countries." She added, "Korea leads various industries such as bio and IT, and through today's event, we hope that businesspeople from both countries will discover more business opportunities and that many will take interest in Turkey, an attractive investment destination at the crossroads of Europe and Asia."

During the event, domestic companies Celltrion and SK Planet gave presentations on their successful entries into the Turkish bioindustry and e-commerce markets, respectively, and in-depth discussions were held on future strategies to expand economic cooperation. Kang Ho-min, Director of the International Headquarters at KCCI, said, "We will actively create opportunities for exchanges between the governments and companies of both countries so that Korean companies can actively enter large-scale projects in Turkey in the future."