| Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Moon Sung-wook Korea Times file |
Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Moon Sung-wook visited Jakarta, Indonesia, from Sunday to Tuesday (local time), to strengthen cooperation with the Southeast Asian country, the trade ministry said Tuesday.
Indonesia is a key country for Korea's New Southern Policy, a diplomatic initiative spearheaded under the Moon Jae-in administration to diversify trade partners and better respond to global value chain (GVC) disruptions.
The minister reviewed the progress of the policy in Indonesia and reiterated the importance of continued economic cooperation between the two countries, a critical step to stabilizing the supply of raw materials and new growth industries, including electric vehicles (EVs), charging stations and rechargeable EV batteries.
In a congratulatory speech made at the opening of a business forum attended by key local and Korean business figures, Moon cited the growth of trade in recent years.
The trading volume between Korea and Southeast Asia rose to $220 billion (262 trillion won) last year, up 49 percent from $134.9 billion in 2016, he said.
“The Southeast Asian nations have emerged and solidified themselves as key trading partners of Korea under the Moon administration,” the minister said.
Bilateral relations will be bolstered further by closer cooperation in pillar industries including steel, petrochemical, cars and battery manufacturing, in what he characterized as a successful combination of Korea's high-tech major industrial capabilities and Indonesia's abundant raw materials.
Further underpinning the robust ties are economic exchanges expected following a slew of trade agreements either in effect or set to take effect soon. They include the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and Korea-Singapore Digital Partnership Agreement (KSDPA).
Moon visited a Hyundai Motor car manufacturing plant under construction in Kota Deltamas, scheduled to begin operation next month.