The KABC Hybrid Korea Business Forum
Korea’s Off-shore World – the Changing Structure of Production
8.00am – 10am, 18 November 2021 in
B1F, Market Places in Four Seasons Hotel / Online Seminar Room
URGENT NOTE TO
OFF-LINE ATTENDEES of 18 NOVEMBER 2021 Change of Venue
Due to the high preference for online attendance for the KBF meeting to be held on Nov 18th, we are moving the off-line event to the B1F, Market Places in Four Seasons Hotel (and not the Hyatt). Breakfast will be by buffet. Off-line attendees are asked to arrive with time to spare to fill their plates before the session begins which will be at 8.05 am.
A small number of off-line places are still available if you have not yet signed up.
Our session on November 18th will take a brief look at economic development and the promises of COP-26, but the main session is a look at the continuing evolution of Korean investment overseas whose momentum is easily overlooked. This is partly because COP can be better assessed when statements are moving towards policies and actions in December.
Throughout the difficult Covid era, Korean companies have continued to move industry out of Korea and to expand production in other parts of the world, most particularly SE Asia, but also in China, India, Europe, and the USA. The amounts are significant. Korean investment into the US exceeds US investment into Korea. Samsung is the largest foreign investor in a number of countries, notably Vietnam. Already by 2016 34% of all FDI in Vietnam was from Korea, and Korea has maintained about this level ever since.
Despite the difficulties of travel in the Covid era, Korea has continued to invest overseas more than double the amount of in-bound FDI and this figure is likely to be triple in-bound investment in the period August 2021-August 2022. So in November we will be reviewing Korea’s growth as an investor overseas, the evolution of the chaebol as a multinational force and consider whether this is creating a mid-power effect as in the New Southern Policy. As a result of the change in global tax policy at the G-20 in Rome , the Korean tax office expects to increase tax collection from Korea’s multinational investments.
These trade links have crisscrossed with cultural patterns and other ties which should be noted.
We consider that COP-26 will be better assessed in our December session when we expect Korean government plans to be fully laid out to turn promises into action, and an overall assessment of what COP-26 has achieved can be made.
We plan to return to the Hyatt so our meeting will be the first hybrid meeting since June. Come to the Hyatt if you can, stay on line. Either way join us for another informative discussion about the evolution of Korea. The exact venue information will be given next Monday when we issue the reminder.
Yours sincerely,
Tony Michell
Managing Director, KABC Ltd.
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