Increase in Liquid Oxygen Usage Report from 250 to 500kg... "Regulatory Relief and Support Expansion for SMEs"

"Ministry of Industry to Prepare Support Measures to Ease Industry Burdens"
Plans to Amend Enforcement Rules of High-Pressure Gas Control Act
Reviewing Preferential Measures for SoBuJang Leading Companies and SMEs
Amendment of Root Industry Act... Expanding Public Market Access

Moon Seung-wook, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, is delivering a greeting at a meeting with small and medium-sized business owners held on July 8 at the Korea Federation of SMEs in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] The government has introduced support measures for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), including improving outdated legal standards and expanding public procurement channels. The SME sector welcomed the move, saying it responded to on-site difficulties with regulatory relaxation.

The Korea Federation of SMEs stated on the 1st, "The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy's regulatory improvements and support policies to ease the industry's burden are giving hope and expectations."

Earlier, on the 9th of last month, the Federation held an on-site meeting with Minister Moon Seung-wook of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy to propose urgent tasks for system improvement. The Ministry accepted 7 out of 9 proposed tasks, showing a strong willingness to resolve them, and showed a positive attitude toward the remaining proposals as well.

Following the on-site meeting, legally outdated standards are expected to be rationally improved. The reporting standard for the use of liquefied oxygen, used in construction welding or seafood distribution processes, will be raised from 250 kg to 500 kg. The government plans to revise the "High-Pressure Gas Safety Control Act Enforcement Rules" to include these changes by the third quarter of this year.

Until now, on-site workers typically used two 170 kg cylinders, which required reporting, but it was difficult to meet reporting requirements such as securing separation distance and appointing safety managers, leading to cases of punishment. This standard revision is expected to ease the burden on livelihood-type small businesses.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Interest in SMEs will also increase when promoting industrial policies such as SoBuJang (materials, parts, and equipment). If selected as a SoBuJang top company, various supports such as R&D, financing, and overseas expansion will be strengthened. However, among the 22 top companies selected so far, only 6 are SMEs, which was disappointing. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy plans to expand explanatory sessions for SMEs and consider preferential scoring for SoBuJang small and strong companies.

Public-private communication for the promotion of the root industry is also expected to become more active. In June, the government amended the "Root Industry Act" to include expanding the scope of materials and technologies and increasing support for the future-oriented structural transformation of the root industry. In this regard, the Ministry promised to activate practical consultations to ensure that industry opinions are reflected as much as possible when revising subordinate laws before the implementation date in December.

Expansion of public procurement channels for SMEs is also anticipated. The Ministry has reflected SME product purchase performance in management evaluations of affiliated public institutions to expand purchases of SME products and promised to expand promotion and encourage the use of cooperative association procurement support systems.

Additionally, support measures for export SMEs affected by logistics difficulties are being prepared and implemented. Since the end of last month, special logistics cost loans worth 20 billion KRW have been provided to SMEs, and a second supplementary budget has been secured to expand logistics cost support. The frequency of temporary vessels to the Americas is being increased from twice to four times a month, and win-win transportation support projects involving large companies such as POSCO and Korean Air supporting steam cargo transport are also being newly developed.

Kim Ki-moon, Chairman of the Korea Federation of SMEs, expressed gratitude for the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy's active support for SMEs and efforts to resolve difficulties, and hoped that practical regulatory improvements reflecting industry opinions would become more active.