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In July, the Chamber actively involved in facilitating dialogues with the Korean and European governments. The highlights include hosting ‘The 10th Anniversary Conference on the EU-KOREA FTA’ with the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) and BusinessEurope.
‘The 10th Anniversary Conference on the EU-KOREA FTA’ Successfully Concluded
July 2, 2021
The European Chamber of Commerce in Korea (ECCK) hosted ‘The 10th Anniversary Conference on the EU-KOREA FTA’ in cooperation with the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) and BusinessEurope on July 1, 2021.
Commemorating the 10-year anniversary of the EU-Korea FTA, the online conference was organized to recognize milestone achievements and discuss the next step of the EU-Korea partnership. Moreover, it was joined by industry experts and academics from both Europe and Korea.
The conference opened with welcoming remarks from the co-hosts in Korea, ECCK and KITA. In his welcoming speech, Dirk Lukat, Chairperson of ECCK and CEO of Schenker Korea, said “Today, 10 years ago was notable for many reasons. The EU-Korea Free Trade Agreement was provisionally applied, which at that time was considered the most comprehensive trade agreement the EU had ever signed. Aside from being the first FTA to be signed with an Asian nation, the FTA was often referred to as the first next-generation FTA.”
“In simple words, the EU Korea FTA is certainly a good one that brought numerous benefits to the EU and Korea. While increasing trade and investment, the FTA has strengthened the strategic partnership between the two partners. Furthermore, the FTA improved the Korean economy’s transparency and credibility,” he added.
Following the opening session, the keynote speeches were delivered by Dr. Hyun-jung Je, Director of Center for Trade Studies & Cooperation at KITA and Markus Beyrer, Director General at BusinessEurope.
The panel discussion was moderated by Amb. Hyemin Lee, Former Korean Ambassador to France and former Chief Negotiator for the EU-Korea FTA. Also, the session included distinguished experts from Korea and Europe, namely Professor Si Hong Kim from Hankuk University of Foreign Studies Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence, Dr. Dong Hee Joe from Korea Institute for International Economic Policy, Luisa Santos from BusinessEurope, and Donghee Kim from Philips Korea.
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Business Round Table with Vice-President of the European Commission Frans Timmermans
July 7, 2021
On July 6, the ECCK hosted a Business Round Table with Frans Timmermans, Executive Vice President of the European Commission for the European Green Deal and European Commissioner for Climate Action at the Millennium Hilton Seoul.
Alongside the guests from the European Commission and the Delegation of the European Union to the Republic of Korea, participants included European and Korean business leaders and other experts. The ECCK was represented by Vice Chairperson Donghee Kim and President Christoph Heider. Other notable guests included, Woo Taehee, Executive Vice Chairman of KCCI and Kim Heungchong, President of Korea Institute for International Economic Policy.
The dominating topic of that evening was the European and Korean plans towards carbon neutrality and possibilities of collaboration between companies.
ECCK Congratulates Korean New Deal 2.0 Strategic Meeting
July 16, 2021
The ‘Korean New Deal’ marked its first anniversary on July 14, 2021. ECCK Chairperson Dirk Lukat sent a congratulatory message to Korean New Deal 2.0 Strategic Meeting held at Cheong Wa Dae.
“On behalf of the ECCK member companies, I congratulate Korea and President Moon Jae-in on the first anniversary of the Korea New Deal. Please be assured that Europe is fully committed to support and collaborate wherever we can to ensure that the best technology is used to achieve the targets of the Korea New Deal,” said Chairperson Lukat in the message.
During the event, the government announced the upgrade to the original plan includes an increase to the fiscal investment plan from KRW 160 trillion to KRW 220 trillion to be made by 2025 and expansion of the Green New Deal taking into consideration carbon neutrality.
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ECCK Chairperson Interview with Korea JoongAng Daily Newspaper on EU-Korea FTA
July 6, 2021
An interview article with ECCK Chairperson Dirk Lukat was published in Korea JoongAng Daily on July 6. In the interview, Chairperson Lukat evaluates the trade relation between EU and Korea in the past 10 years and discusses the necessity to update the EU-Korea FTA.
ECCK head calls on EU, Korea to modernize trade agreement
In 2011, Korea became the European Union (EU)’s first trade partner in Asia to sign a free trade agreement (FTA). For the EU, it was the first trade agreement that stipulated duties related to intellectual property, sustainability, regulation transparency and labor issues, never before included by the trade bloc in FTA negotiations. The terms served as an important reference point for all EU FTAs that followed. The trade volume between Korea and EU countries reached 90 billion euros ($106 billion) in 2020, a 45 percent increase from 60 billion euros a decade ago. Korean imports of European consumer goods reached $20.8 billion last year, almost a threefold increase from 2010, right before the FTA took effect. Vehicle imports alone grew four times during the same period. At the other end, Korea has benefited from customs exemptions much longer than other Asian countries like Japan, Vietnam and Singapore that didn’t have an FTA with the EU until 2019. The biggest beneficiary was electric vehicles (EV). Korea’s EV exports to Europe boomed from $100 million in 2015 to $2.6 billion last year, accounting for 23 percent of Europe’s EV imports. Among EV exporters to Europe including the U.S., China and Japan, Korea is the only one exporting vehicles duty-free.
While the FTA largely served both parties well, Dirk Lukat, chairperson of the European Chamber of Commerce in Korea (ECCK), says the 10-year-old agreement does not sufficiently touch on topics that are important today. Dirk also serves as the CEO of logistics company Schenker Korea and was appointed ECCK chair in June 2020.
Link to the article: [Korea JoongAng Daily] ECCK head calls on EU, Korea to modernize trade agreement
ECCK Successfully Hosts ‘2021 Europe-Korea Virtual Business Conference’ with KCCI
July 6, 2021
On July 2, the ‘2021 Europe-Korea Virtual Business Conference’ was jointly hosted by the ECCK and the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), which discussed ESG disclosure and management strategies of Europe and Korea to spread ESG management.
The event was attended by major domestic and international figures including Chairperson of ECCK Dirk Lukat, Vice Chairman of KCCI Tae-hee Woo, EU Ambassador to Korea H.E. Maria Castillo-Fernandez, British Acting Deputy Ambassador to Korea Mark Buttigieg, and other thirteen relevant experts.
In his opening remarks, ECCK Chairperson Dirk Lukat said, “Europe has been at the forefront of sustainable development so far. There is still much work to be done, such as creating a globally recognized framework to ensure transparency for investors and coordinating ESG-related policies across countries.”
Tae-hee Woo, Vice Chairman of KCCI, also said, “In the context of increasing burdens on companies in Europe and Korea, such as the introduction of a carbon border tax and supply chain due diligence, global ESG disclosures such as GRI, TCFD, and SASB are likely to act as corporate regulations in the future, so we need to respond together” in his opening remarks.
VBA* President and Vice President of BASF Christian Heller said, “ESG has become a mainstream business strategy for leading companies, and harmonized regulations are being created internationally.” He added, “VBA enables corporate decision-makers to include sustainability in their business strategies to create long-term value and meet disclosure needs.”
* Value Balancing Alliance: A business alliance that develops a global standard model for measuring ESG currency values
During his presentation, Jonas von Oldenskiöld, CEO of Swiss Re Korea and Chairperson for ECCK Insurance Committee, emphasized, “Recently, interest in ESG disclosures related to climate change has been increasing. Europe is currently leading the way in disclosures related to climate change, and a new consensus has been reached on standardization of disclosure and performance measurement.”
The recorded conference is now available on ECCK’s YouTube Channel. To watch full video, please visit us on YouTube!
(Photo = Gyeongsangbuk-do)
ECCK Meets Gyeongsangbuk-do Governor Lee Cheol Woo
July 9, 2021
On July 8, ECCK President Christoph Heider paid a visit to Gyeongsangbuk-do to discuss cooperation with European countries and ways to attract investments.
During the meeting with Gyeongsangbuk-do Governor Lee Cheol Woo, President Heider explored measures to promote exports and optimizing the business environment for SMEs in Gyeongsangbuk-do.
While in Gyeongsangbuk-do, President Heider participated in the investment promotion meeting and trade Q&A session to further communication with the exporting businesses to Europe.
(Photo = Busan Metropolitan City)
ECCK Meets with Busan Mayor Park Heong-joon
July 19, 2021
On July 16, ECCK Chairperson Dirk Lukat, together with ECCK members in the maritime and logistics sectors, met with Busan Mayor Park Heong-joon to discuss cooperation between Busan Metropolitan City and the European countries.
During the meeting with Mayor Park, ECCK members including DNV GL Korea, Kongsberg Maritime Korea, Hapag-Lloyd Korea, MAHLE Bekr Korea, Finnair and IKEA, had an open discussion on energy conversion policies and specific industrial support measures for converting Busan into a Green Smart city.
Following the discussion session, Busan’s Foreign Investment Attraction Investment & Trade Division held an investment briefing and Q&A session for ECCK members to further understand the Busan investment environment.
*This meeting was held under the strict COVID-19 preventive measures
Meeting with National Assembly Member Hong Jungmin
July 1, 2021
On July 1, ECCK President Christoph Heider had a meeting with National Assembly Member Hong Jungmin, who belongs to Democratic Party and a member of National Assembly Trade, Industry, Energy, SMEs, and Startups Committee.
The two had constructive talks on EU-Korea FTA modernization, Sustainability, especially Green Deal and Climate Change, etc. As a future cooperation, they are committed to meet regularly and discuss on various agendas.
ECCK President Meets with National Assembly Member Kang Sunwoo
July 1, 2021
On July 1, ECCK President Christoph Heider had a meeting with National Assembly Member Kang Sunwoo, who belongs to Democratic Party and a member of National Assembly Health and Welfare Committee.
The two parties shared opinions on fair treatment for foreign residents regarding the COVID-19 policies and discussed continuous future cooperation. Kang Sunwoo is to participate in ECCK’s future roundtable meeting as a speaker.
Meeting with MOTIE Director-General for Cross-border Investment Policy
July 20, 2021
On July 20, ECCK Chairperson Dirk Lukat and President Christoph Heider met with Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) Director-General for Cross-border Investment Policy Park Jungwook at the Government Complex Seoul.
Director-General Park Jungwook delivered his sincere appreciation for the ECCK’s contribution on the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). They discussed non-tariff barriers such as discriminatory amendment of legislation and on future cooperation related to the Korean New Deal.
ECCK Hosts Information Session with KECO
July 29, 2021
The European Chamber of Commerce (ECCK) held an information session with the Korea Environment Corporation (KECO) on Resource Recirculation System on July 27, 2021.
The session was open to Cosmetics, Beer, Wine & Spirits (BWS), Food, Kitchen & Home Appliances (KHA) committee members. Recently, the Ministry of Environment (ME) distributed guidelines related to the enforcement of prohibition of repackaging. This briefing was an opportunity to learn more about the contents of repackaging violations and check the packaging status of each member company’s products through various examples. In addition, it clarified the contents of the packaging inspection system and the packaging material & structure evaluation system in general. During the Q&A session, they also covered new separate discharge mark which will be implemented starting from Jan. 1, 2022 for newly introduced products in the market.
We would like to thank KECO for the informative session. Also, ECCK and KECO agreed on having regular information exchange and session related to packaging matters and we are looking forward to cooperating with them.
*This event was held under the strict COVID-19 preventive measures.
ECCK CFO Forum on Recent Issues in Korean Labor & Employment Law
July 1, 2021
On June 30, the ECCK held a CFO Forum focusing on recent trends and compliance issues in Korean labor and employment law at Kim & Chang office.
The session was presented by Mr. Hoin Lee, Senior Foreign Attorney at Kim & Chang, who is an expert on labor and employment law issues. The forum covered enforcement of the 52-hour workweek and recent cases, as well as recent updates of the Korean labor laws including workplace harassment and the Serious Accidents Punishment Act.
We would like to thank Kim & Chang once again for their generous venue support and an informative session.
For more information on ECCK’s CFO Forum, please check: ECCK CFO Forum Invites CFOs of ECCK Member Companies
ECCK Membership Directory 2021: Now Available!
July 27, 2021
The European Chamber of Commerce (ECCK) is pleased to announce that the ECCK Membership Directory 2021 is now available for our members.
As a part of our ongoing sustainable initiative, we will be publishing our annual membership directory digital-only from this year. We welcome your feedback and thoughts as this is our very first digital membership directory and we are continuously optimizing for the best experience of our members.
If you are an ECCK member who has not received an email with access link to the directory, please contact PR & Communications team at ecck-comm@ecck.or.kr.
ECCK President Christoph Heider Joins ‘Children’s Traffic Safety Relay Challenge’
July 29, 2021
ECCK President Christoph Heider has been nominated by Mr. Eric Langmans (CEO of Atlas Copco Korea) to participate in the Children’s Traffic Safety Relay Challenge, a relay social media campaign to raise awareness of children’s traffic safety.
“Special thanks to Eric for nominating me to join this remarkable challenge. I am happy to take part in this campaign to promote the importance of improving road safety for children. Next, I would like to nominate Mr. Kyu-Sang Cho (CEO of Daimler Truck Korea) and Mr. Anthony Laurence (General Manager of MAHLE Behr Korea Inc.) to join this meaningful campaign. We are in this together!”
ECCK Elects Chairperson of the ECCK Energy and Environment Working Group
The ECCK is pleased to announce that, Mr. Frederic Lucas, Executive Managing Director of Byucksan Engineering has been re-elected as the Chairperson of the ECCK Energy and Environment Working Group.
Mr. Lucas was elected as the Chairperson during the Energy and Environment Working Group Meeting held on June 28, 2021. He will serve a two-year term as the Working Group Chairperson from July 1, 2021.
We would like to sincerely congratulate Mr. Lucas and look forward to his leadership.
ECCK Elects Chairperson for the ECCK Chemical Committee
July 6, 2021
The ECCK is pleased to announce that, Ms. Sukhee Cho, Director of Korea GPS, P&G Korea has been re-elected as the Chairperson of the ECCK Chemical Committee.
Ms. Cho was elected as the Chairperson during the ECCK Chemical Committee Meeting held on June 30 2021. She will serve a two-year term as the Committee Chairperson from July 6, 2021.
We would like to sincerely congratulate Ms. Cho and look forward to her leadership for the committee.
New Chairperson for the ECCK Logistics & Transport Committee
July 23, 2021
The ECCK is pleased to announce that, Mr. Min Kyu Choi, Managing Director & President of Hapag-Lloyd Korea will take over the role as the Chairperson for the ECCK Logistics & Transport Committee.
Mr. Choi will serve a two-year term as the Committee Chairperson, effective immediately. We would like to sincerely congratulate Mr. Choi and look forward to his leadership for the committee.
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