Government Requests Cooperation on Urea Imports and Power Supply from Jiangsu Province, China

'Korea-Jiangsu Province Economic and Trade Cooperation Joint Meeting' Held

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Haeyoung] The government requested cooperation regarding urea imports and power usage restrictions during an economic cooperation exchange meeting with the Jiangsu Provincial Government of China.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy held the "Korea-Jiangsu Economic and Trade Cooperation Joint Meeting" with the Jiangsu Provincial Government on the 29th at the Grand Intercontinental Hotel in Seoul to discuss these matters. Jiangsu Province is South Korea's largest trading and investment region in China, accounting for 26% of Korea-China trade and 24% of investment in China.

The trade volume between the two sides was $69.963 billion (approximately 83.7 trillion KRW) in 2020, an increase of 1.65% compared to the previous year. This year, from the first to third quarter, it recorded $67.241 billion (approximately 80.4 trillion KRW), a 17.2% increase compared to the same period last year.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy has regularly held Korea-Jiangsu economic and trade cooperation exchange meetings involving both governments and the private sector based on the "Korea-Jiangsu Economic and Trade Cooperation Enhancement Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)" signed in May 2016. Considering the COVID-19 situation, this meeting was held online in the form of a government joint meeting.

Both sides evaluated that through close exchanges and cooperation, they have minimized the negative impact caused by the spread of COVID-19 and led stable growth in Korea-Jiangsu trade. They agreed to actively support exchanges and cooperation between companies of both countries to realize carbon neutrality in the future, and to revitalize industrial complexes such as Saemangeum in Korea and Yancheng in China to foster them as investment hubs.

Cooperation measures to resolve unstable factors in the business environment, such as power usage restrictions by Chinese local governments and global supply chain risks due to urea supply shortages, were also major agenda items discussed.

Seo Garam, Director of the Trade Cooperation Bureau at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, stated, "Companies are facing difficulties due to power usage restrictions by Chinese local governments and strict quarantine periods applied to business travelers. We ask the Chinese side to pay attention to easing these measures." He added, "We also request government-level cooperation to ensure that urea imports from Jiangsu Province, a major urea production area geographically close to Korea, and domestic transportation proceed smoothly."