-KOTRA hosted a "2020 Invest KOREA Forum" online on Jul 8
-A special venue to make sure the post COVID 19 investment climate in Korea and to look for business strategies and opportunities in response to the future of the global economy after the coronavirus pandemic.
In cooperation with the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE), Korea Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA: CEO and President, Kwon Pyung-oh) hosted a web-based seminar “2020 Invest KOREA Forum” under the theme of “Post COVID-19 FDI promotion strategy” on Jul 8.
The webinar was arranged to make sure the investment climate in Korea, while looking for business strategies and opportunities in response to the future of the global economy after the coronavirus pandemic.
A group experts (Lee Seong-bong, prof. at Seoul Women’s University, Jeong Hyung-gon, senior researcher at Korea Institute for International Economic Policy, Jeong Moo-seop, prof. at DongA University, Jeong Man-tae, senior researcher at Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade, Lee Ji-pyeong, advisory consultant, LG Economic research institute, Park Byoeng-gil, vice president of TaeguTec Ltd.) presented in the panel discussion.
The guests narrowed South Korea’s FDI promotion strategies down to three solutions given the current dynamics of the global economy where externalities such as escalating tit-for-tat trade conflict between the US and China, widespread global protectionism, and rising manufacturing costs in China, have been arising with the combined impact from the coronavirus calamity, which has caused global companies to increasingly pull production out of China or look for alternative investment destinations other than China.
First, FDI flows into stable returns are expected to drive up demand for investment into materials, parts and equipment business, essential to major industries in Korea such as semiconductor, display and automobile. In this sense, Seoul needs to bring multinational companies with cutting-edge technologies in the materials, components and equipment industries into the country by making extensive use of investment incentives which include cash grants or free economic zones.
Second, based upon proactive interventions and agile disease containment efforts against COVID-19, South Korea needs to turn its eyes towards the fields of medical, pharmaceutical and bio-healthcare as the future growth driver to attract foreign investments.
With soaring demand for online games and educational content, fueled by the growth of the stay-at-home economy during the pandemic, entertainment business can be a boon to investors in the coming age.
Finally, it’s necessary to form a global R&D cluster and implement what's called a “patent box”. The R&D cluster can help businesses home and abroad maintain a secure foothold in joint-research work with universities under industrial sponsorship programs, which is designed to meet stronger needs of open innovation paradigm. The patent box refers to a tax relief scheme that allows businesses to apply a lower or zero rate of corporate tax to profits earned from its patents.
Kwon Pyung-oh, CEO and president of KOTRA, said “Global value chain is now steering a course towards stability in supply chain networks.” adding that, “In preparation for the post COVID-19, South Korea is called on to turn today’s crisis into a momentum to take another giant leap forward in shaping a global hub for cutting-edge technologies and innovation.”
Source : KOTRA (2020.07.09)