The government said Wednesday it would establish small free economic zones in provincial cities this year in an effort to attract more foreign direct investment, in particular from small and mid-sized firms.Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy officials said in a press briefing that the so-called “mini” FEZs could be created for foreign-invested land exceeding 80,000 square meters, one-fourth the land required for an existing FEZ.Previously, an area was designated as an FEZ when the foreign-in

Industry April 17, 2013

The government will support local builders to diversify overseas plant orders and to win more infrastructure projects in a bid to put the faltering construction industry back on track, officials said Tuesday. “The cutthroat competition among the nation’s leading builders in pursuit of the same overseas orders has been prevalent, and the business practice is dealing a blow to the entire industry,” Land, Infrastructure and Transport Minister Suh Seoung-hwan said in an interview with a local cable

Industry April 16, 2013

The nation’s leading private and public think tanks projected that Korea’s GDP growth would fall below 3 percent this year, hovering between 2.5 and 2.9 percent, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said in a press release on Monday. The economic growth projection was presented by representatives from 11 private and public think tanks at a lunch meeting with Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Yoon Sang-jick. The GDP projection is similar to that issued by the Bank of Korea last week. The

April 15, 2013

The organizing committee to prepare for the hosting of the 2015 World Water Forum in Daegu will launch Tuesday, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said Monday. During its kick-off event, the organizing committee will name Lee Jung-moo, former land minister, as chairman. Lee has led the Korea Water Forum since 2012. As the first task, the organizing committee has prepared a kick-off event to be held May 14-15 in Daegu. About 500 participants from all over the world, including gove

April 15, 2013

A series of breakdowns of the nation’s nuclear power plants have rekindled the debate over whether to shut down old reactors or extend their operation.A top government official fanned the controversy when he hinted at a possible shutdown of another reactor whose design lifetime has expired.“Whether to extend operation of the 30-year-old first reactor at the Wolseong complex will be decided based on the agreement of the public,” said Lee Eun-chul, new head of the nation’s Nuclear Safely and Secur

Industry April 14, 2013

SK Innovation, a key affiliate of SK Group, won the second round of its patent lawsuit against LG Chem over a key material used for electric car batteries, according to the company in a press release.On Thursday, the Patent Court of Korea dismissed the appeal that LG Chem filed at the end of 2012 to challenge the Korean Intellectual Property Tribunal’s decision to uphold SK Innovation.“The successive wins of SK Innovation in a legal battle with LG Chem testifies to SK Innovation’s technological

Industry April 11, 2013

The amount of foreign direct investment into Korea hit a record high of $3.39 billion in the first quarter of this year, a 44.7 percent increase from a year ago, despite rising security concerns on the Korean Peninsula, according to data released Thursday by the Ministry Trade, Industry and Energy. “The data showed that the impact of geopolitical risks created by North Korea on investment decisions of foreigners were limited for the first three months of the year,” a ministry official said. The

Industry April 11, 2013

The faltering Yongsan project, the nation’s single largest property project worth 31 trillion won ($29 billion), will likely be liquidated as the board of KORAIL gave consent Monday for the state-run rail operator to hand off the project. The move of KORAIL, the largest shareholder of the project with a 25 percent stake in Dream Hub, a special purpose company in charge of Yongsan project decision, was expected last Friday as the board of Dream Hub, composed of 30 shareholders including KORAIL, r

Industry April 8, 2013

Korea will start supporting developing countries by consulting them on its own rural development policy through its official development assistance program, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said on Monday.“The ministry has completed development of 20 modules for the agriculture-related policy consulting services, titled the Korean Agricultural Policy Experiences for Food Security, or KAPEX, geared toward developing countries,” a ministry official said. The 20 modules include a

April 8, 2013