Korea looks North to strengthen economic ties with India

Chandigarh, November 24, 2022: “The States of Punjab, Haryana and UT Chandigarh hold enormous potential for strengthening the Korea-India partnership”, said Chang Jae-bok, Ambassador, The Embassy of the Republic of Korea here today.

Speaking at the Korea-India Economic Cooperation Forum 2022 at the CII Northern Region Headquarters today, Chang Jae-bok, Ambassador, The Embassy of the Republic of Korea shared, “I am happy to say that the year 2023 will mark the fiftieth anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and India. This region has excellent human resources, capacity of scale and is at the centre of the future of the agriculture and manufacturing pool. With CII’s help and the amalgamation of innovation & technology along with top-notch human resources available in this region will create great synergy for the bilateral relationship between the two countries.” 

Various recent government policies resulted in the liberalisation of several key sectors, paving the way for foreign counterparts to set up Joint Ventures with Indian parties. As a result, nearly 700 Korean companies have entered the Indian market and increased their investments.

Sharing the details on the partnership between the two countries, Yonggi Kim, Secretary (Economic), The Embassy of the Republic of Korea said, “In the last 10 years, the trade volume between the two countries increased by 116 per cent. India is the 11th trade partner of Korea and Korea is the 9th trade partner of India. The upgrade in the countries’ bilateral trade agreement – the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) – is the most desirable and efficient way to enhance trade relations between both countries. The goal is to reach $50 billion worth of bilateral trade by 2030.”

He further shared that the sum total of Korea’s foreign direct investment into India from April 2000 to March 2022 is valued at 5.28 billion dollars, making South Korea India’s thirteenth largest investor. Korea has already invested about $137 million for six months this year.

Hargunjit Kaur, Secretary – Industries, Chandigarh Administration in her address proposed to the Ambassador to partner on a twin city initiative wherein Chandigarh is actively looking for a sister/twin city in South Korea that has a similar size and topographical features which can allow the Administration to learn and collaborate through focused deliberations in trade, tourism, development, etc.

Talking about strengthening ties between Punjab and Korea, Dilip Kumar, Principal Secretary, Investment Promotion and Industries & Commerce, Government of Punjab shared that Punjab exported USD 71.45 mn worth of goods to South Korea in FY 21-22 for yarn, fabric, bulk drugs, residue chemical & allied products, rubber products, hand tools, cutting tools, etc. “A key takeaway from the Korean industry is that brands and universities work as partners for improved industry-academia linkages. If we bring this to Punjab, it will help us enhance trade and cooperation between Punjab and Korea. We would be happy to collaborate and set up more Korean manufacturers in the State to further the ties between our two nations.”

Rajiv Kaila, Chairman, CII Chandigarh & Director, Kaila Engineering Pvt Ltd said, “With K-Pop and other Korean Wave content gaining popularity among the Indian youth, interest of Indian people in Korean culture and language is steadily growing. In milestone developments, Korean history was included in Indian school textbooks in 2018 and the Korean language was offered as a foreign language in Indian secondary schools in 2020.”

Kaila further invited the Korean delegation to participate at the 26th Chandigarh Fair to be held in November 2023.

Among other dignitaries, Gi No Park, Managing Director, Sunjin India; Puneet Anand, Assistant Vice President – Corporate Affairs, Hyundai Motors India; and Kundan Kumar, Manager, Korea Tourism Organization; and Amit Thapar, Chairman, CII Punjab were present during the Forum.

The Korea-India Economic Cooperation Forum 2022 in Chandigarh concluded with a cultural performance by the Korean Cultural Center.