S. Korea, Latin America to discuss ways to boost trade, ICT cooperation

Some 200 corporate and government officials from South Korea and Latin American countries will gather in Mexico this week to discuss ways to enhance bilateral trade and cooperation on advanced technology sectors and explore new business chances, Seoul's finance ministry said Wednesday.

The inaugural Korea-Latin America and the Caribbean Innovation and Trade Forum will take place in Mexico City on Wednesday for a two-day run, which will be hosted by the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Inter-American Development Bank.

The participants plan to hold seminars on a wide range of industry issues, including trade and investment promotion, e-mobility, digital infrastructure, smart manufacturing and smart cities, and companies will have one-on-one consultation sessions to build partnership and discuss business opportunities.

Participating South Korean companies include Hyundai Motor Co., LG Electronics Inc., LG Uplus Corp., Samsung SDS Co. and Kakao Corp., and around 60 business entities from eight Central and Southern American nations, including Mexico, Brazil and Chile, will attend the event, the ministry said.

"The two sides can create a new cooperation model and forge complementary relations based on South Korea's digital technology prowess and Latin America's manufacturing sector," senior ministry official Kim Jae-hwan said.

"The government will further expand joint projects with Latin American nations and support private investment in the region through the economic development cooperation fund and the official development assistance programs," he added.

Two-way trade between South Korea and the Central and Southern American nations surged more than 10 times over the past 30 years to $59.3 billion in 2022 from $5.2 billion in 1991, according to government data. (Yonhap)