FDI pledges to S. Korea up 41.3 percent through Sept.
Foreign direct investment (FDI) pledges made to S. Korea jumped a whopping 41.3 percent on-year in the first nine months of 2021 despite the COVID-19 pandemic, data showed on Oct. 7. Foreigners pledged to make investments of USD 18.2 billion during the January-September period here, compared with USD 12.8 billion a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. "The sharp growth came as global investors became more confident over S. Korea's stable business environment amid the COVID-19 pandemic," the ministry said in a statement. Notably, the service sector saw its FDI pledges move up 60.8 percent over the period to reach USD 14.3 billion. By country, FDI pledges from the United States moved up 8.6 percent to hit USD 3.3 billion, led mostly by the service sector. Investment from the European Union and Britain came to USD 7.3 billion in the January-September period, more than doubling from the previous year amid aggressive merger and acquisition activities. From Japan, S. Korea won investment pledges of USD 730 million, up 33.8 percent from the previous year. The combined FDI pledges from China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan and Malaysia rose 25.7 percent to USD 5 billion, the data also showed.
S. Korea sees tenfold rise in hydrogen fuel use by 2030.
S. Korea will sharply increase the adoption of hydrogen as a fuel of transportation, industrial plants and power generators to become the world's leading hydrogen economy, President Moon Jae-in said on Oct. 7. The government will provide all-around support, including debt payment guarantees and tax deductions, to hydrogen-related companies and their overseas hydrogen projects with an aim to create 30 leading hydrogen companies by 2030. By then, the government plans to boost domestic hydrogen consumption over tenfold to 3.9 million tons from this year's estimated 220,000 tons, according to Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Moon Sung-wook. The minister unveiled the plan, entitled "The benefit of the hydrogen economy and the government's vision as a leading hydrogen economy," in a briefing to President Moon and the country's leading business leaders on the sidelines of the groundbreaking ceremony for Hyundai Mobis' hydrogen fuel cell plants in Incheon, west of Seoul. During the event, President Moon said the government will push forward the plan to make clean hydrogen the country's future growth driver. The 2030 consumption target of hydrogen is twice as much as the government's previously stated number of 1.94 million tons by 2030, disclosed in January 2019 as part of its road map toward a hydrogen economy. By 2050, S. Korea plans to increase domestic hydrogen consumption over tenfold to 27 million tons, compared to 2030. Clean hydrogen, which emits zero carbon dioxide (CO2) during the production process, will account for half of the country's hydrogen consumption by 2030 and then 100% by 2050, by when the country aims to achieve carbon neutrality.
S. Korea receives U.N. investment promotion award
S. Korea's trade investment promotion agency has received an award from a United Nations body in recognition of best practices in promoting investment in healthcare sectors amid the COVID-19 pandemic, officials said on Oct. 20. Invest Korea, the country's investment promotion unit under the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), was chosen as the winner of the 2021 Investment Promotion Awards by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), along with Costa Rica and the Netherlands, among 188 trade-related agencies across the globe. "Invest Korea was recognized for the wide-ranging coverage of the health sector on its virtual outreach channels, including online tools, sector guides and reports, information about investment opportunities, and incentives and databases on potential partners," UNCTAD said in a press release. The agency attracted foreign investment worth USD 18.21 billion in healthcare and other sectors during the first nine months of this year in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic by proactively launching promotion campaigns online, the KOTRA officials said. It is the first time since 2007 that the KOTRA or its affiliated agencies received the U.N. award.
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**This article is extracted from Invest KOREA Magazine November, 2021.
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