Kang Kyung-sung, KOTRA President: "U.S. Tariffs Still Complex... Expanding Support for SMEs"

First Anniversary Press Conference Marks Milestone
"U.S. Tariff Details Remain Complex for SMEs"
"Supply Chain Companies Below Large Corporations Also Need Attention"
Expansion of K-Consumer Goods Exports... "A Significant Opportunity for Us"

Kang Kyung-sung, President of the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), recently stated that although a tariff agreement has been reached between Korea and the United States, U.S. tariffs remain difficult for companies to fully understand. He emphasized, "KOTRA will continue to maintain the highest level of response currently in place."

Kang Kyung-sung, President of the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), is sharing his vision for the future and reflections on the past year at the first anniversary meeting held on the 13th. KOTRA

At a meeting held on the 13th at a restaurant in Jongno-gu, Seoul to mark the first anniversary of his inauguration, President Kang said, "For small and medium-sized enterprises, the details of U.S. tariffs are extremely complicated," expressing his commitment to continued support.

Previously, Korea and the United States concluded their tariff negotiations on October 29, reaching a final agreement on the details. Throughout the negotiations, the U.S. position on tariff rates changed multiple times, and various variables emerged. During this process, KOTRA has played a key role as a support center, providing consultation and assistance with export contracts to prevent confusion among companies. In particular, KOTRA launched the "Tariff Response 119" service in February, handling 8,400 consultations through last month. Help desks established at 20 overseas trade offices also contributed to resolving difficulties at export sites.

President Kang anticipates that KOTRA's responsibilities regarding U.S. tariffs will only increase in this new phase. He predicted, "With the conclusion of the Korea-U.S. tariff negotiations, Korean manufacturing companies will expand into the U.S. market on a massive scale." He added, "Large corporations have local subsidiaries and are well-versed in work such as accounting, but upper-tier companies in the supply chain below them face different circumstances and could be significantly affected." He stressed that KOTRA must actively support these companies.

The meeting was held to commemorate President Kang's first year at the helm of KOTRA, a position he assumed on November 11 of last year. He said, "Over the past year, I have realized how important KOTRA's global network (131 trade offices in 85 countries) is, and I have also come to understand the weighty responsibility it entails." He added, "With the growing influence of the Korean Wave, I am convinced that Korea can seize new opportunities and make significant progress through the export of K-consumer goods."

He also announced plans to dedicate the coming year to helping Korea usher in the era of "1 trillion dollars in exports" and join the ranks of the world's top five export nations. In particular, President Kang highlighted consumer goods such as food, cosmetics, fashion, and household items as key growth drivers and pledged strong support for these sectors.

Korean consumer goods exports have surged recently, driven by cultural content such as the globally popular online video service (OTT) animation "K-Pop Demon Hunters." Between January and August, exports increased by 6.6 percent, reaching an all-time high. While some have expressed concerns that this boom in consumer goods might be short-lived, President Kang firmly stated, "It is not a temporary phenomenon." He explained, "Consumer goods are products that require winning people's hearts, and this time, Korea has captured a genuine opportunity." He added, "If exports expand not only in business-to-business (B2B) manufacturing but also in business-to-consumer (B2C) consumer goods, our export portfolio will become even stronger."

Kang Kyung-sung, President of the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), is sharing his vision for the future and reflections on the past year at the first anniversary meeting held on the 13th. KOTRA

To help Korea achieve its national goal of becoming one of the world's top three artificial intelligence (AI) powers, President Kang vowed to "focus all available capabilities." In July, KOTRA established the "KOTRA AI Committee," chaired by President Kang, and expanded its related departments. Next year, KOTRA plans to launch an AI-powered export support platform called "Export Secretary." President Kang said, "Given the rapid pace of technological change, the AI Committee has been emphasizing the importance of securing and managing digital data effectively at this stage."

Cooperative relationships established with overseas organizations during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit held in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, at the end of last month will be actively leveraged to support Korean companies' exports. President Kang said, "At a luncheon with the Chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, which will chair APEC next year, we agreed to expand exchanges. I also met with the head of the Australian Trade and Investment Commission, and the two organizations signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU)." He further emphasized plans to focus on supporting export initiatives to the "Global South," including Latin America and Africa. President Kang predicted, "Going forward, Latin America and Africa will become not just future markets, but our core markets."

In addition, President Kang presented plans to utilize KOTRA's infrastructure to address the recent social issue of overseas employment scams. Recently, it was revealed that young Koreans who traveled to Cambodia for jobs at a local company had their passports and belongings confiscated, and were detained, assaulted, and forced into labor for extended periods, causing public shock. President Kang stressed, "Prevention is crucial." He added, "We have changed the main page of KOTRA's TradeInvest24 website to display employment scam warnings from 12 Southeast Asian trade offices and related agencies, and we are strengthening preventive activities."