Stocklosa (CCIB): Republic of Korea, Romania's important commercial and economic partner
The Republic of Korea is one of Romania's important commercial and economic partner in South-Eastern Asia. The dynamics of commercial exchanges in 2023, especially exports, indicates a growing interest of Romanian companies in this market, said Iuliu Stocklosa, the president of Bucharest Chamber of Trade and Industry (CCIB).
According to a CCIB press release, issued on Tuesday, Stocklosa met Min Seok Ko, Romania's honorary consul in Incheon, Korea, on his first visit in Romania, following his recent appointment in this position.
“With a population of over 3 million inhabitants, the metropolitan city of Incheon is located in the north-western part of the country, neighboring Gyeonggi province and the capital city of Seoul. It is known as the main entrance point in the Republic of Korea because of Incheon international airport (the largest in the country) and Incheon port (the second largest after Busan). Incheon Free Zone has developed continuously lately, the big Korean companies (Samsung, LG, SK, etc) deciding to open production facilities in that area”, the press release shows.
The honorary consul Ko said the aim of the visit was to prospect the Romanian market, being interested in identifying business opportunities especially in tourism, IC&C, electronic equipment, textiles, fod and wine. He intends to return to Romania in October or November with an economic mission including eight companies from Incheon area.
On November 30, 2023, bilateral commercial exchanges reached 1.1 billion dollars, 2.5% over the level recorded in the same period of 2022. Romanian deliveries recorded 0.51 billion dollars (+27.3%), while imports from South Korea amounted to 590 million dollars (- 12.2%).
According to the National Office of Trade Registrar (ONRC), on December 31, 2023, 288 companies with South Korean capital were registered with a social capital of 123.6 million dollars, 0.19% of all foreign investments, situating South Korea 30th among states investing in Romania.