S. Korea, China agree to fast-track supply chain talks, expand industrial cooperation at Saemangeum

South Korea and China's trade authorities have agreed to hold rapid consultations when supply chain issues arise and to develop the Saemangeum industrial complex into a key hub for bilateral trade and investment cooperation.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said Tuesday it held the 4th Korea-China Supply Chain Hotline Meeting and the 6th Korea-China Industrial Park Working-Level Meeting with China's Ministry of Commerce in Huizhou, Guangdong Province, discussing ways to stabilize bilateral supply chains and expand investment in industrial parks.

The meetings were convened to support business activity through stable management of bilateral supply chains and to identify new cooperation opportunities through Korea-China industrial cooperation parks, including Saemangeum.

The Korea-China Supply Chain Hotline Meeting is an intergovernmental consultative body established to promote supply chain stability between the two countries. It has been held annually since its inaugural session in 2023.

At the meeting, the South Korean side urged the Chinese government to maintain continued attention and cooperation to ensure the smooth import of key goods. Seoul also requested cooperation in creating a more predictable business environment for South Korean companies operating in China.

According to the ministry, bilateral trade between South Korea and China reached $263.1 billion in the January–August period this year, up 51.3 percent from the same period a year earlier. South Korean exports to China totaled $117.7 billion during the period, a 42.7 percent increase year on year.

The Korea-China industrial cooperation parks were designated by both governments as industrial cooperation hubs following the conclusion of the Korea-China free trade agreement in 2015. South Korea designated Saemangeum, while China designated Yantai in Shandong Province, Yancheng in Jiangsu Province, and Huizhou in Guangdong Province.

Following a visit to Saemangeum in September by an investment survey delegation of more than 20 Chinese companies, the two sides at this week's meeting focused on ways to improve investment conditions at their respective industrial parks, with the aim of translating interest into actual corporate entry.

China plans to send additional investment survey delegations next year to continue identifying investment demand at Saemangeum. The two countries agreed to develop the Korea-China industrial parks, including Saemangeum, into practical trade and investment cooperation hubs connecting companies from both sides.

"Korea-China supply chains are directly tied to our companies' production and exports, so stable day-to-day management is critical," said Bae Jun-hyung, director general for trade cooperation at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. "We will continue communicating on supply chain issues through the hotline, and will pursue follow-up consultations to ensure that industrial park cooperation centered on Saemangeum translates into tangible results that businesses can feel."