South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has instructed relevant government ministries not to pursue an application to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) in 2026, according to a government announcement on October 8.
The CPTPP is a free trade agreement that establishes c

The South Korean government will ease import approval requirements for tempered glass used in automotive displays. Currently, tempered glass for automotive display cover windows is assigned the same Harmonized System (HS) code as tempered glass for aircraft and spacecraft, requiring import approval from the Korea Aer

The South Korean government announced its Korea Green Transformation (K-GX) strategy covering the ten-year period from 2026 to 2035. In the transport sector, it aims to increase the combined share of electric vehicles (EVs) and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in new vehicle sales to at least 70% by 2035. To support this

The South Korean government announced the “Second Round of Field-Oriented Measures to Support Corporate Investment and Innovation.” By streamlining administrative procedures and easing regulations, the government aims to accelerate corporate investment projects totaling KRW 7.9 trillion (approximately USD 5.9 billion

Reported on October 3, 2026, the Thai Prime Minister stated that Thailand is ready to welcome increased South Korean investment and advance bilateral economic cooperation during the 2026 ROK National Day reception on October 2.
South Korea is one of Thailand’s major trading partners, while Korean investment continues

On September 30, South Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources held a ceremony at Hyundai Mobis headquarters to sign business agreements on cooperation to build a next-generation vehicle ecosystem. As part of the AI Future Vehicle Division of the M.AX Alliance, an industry-academia-government-research organ

South Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources announced that it will strengthen supply chain cooperation in critical minerals and other areas with five Central Asian countries—Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan—following the first Korea-Central Asia Summit held in Seoul from Se

The South Korean Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources announced on September 23 that it has finalized the First Basic Plan for Resource Security, the Critical Mineral Designation Plan, and the First Critical Mineral Stockpiling Plan.
Under the First Basic Plan for Resource Security, the government will provide f

South Korea and Mexico signed or agreed on a total of 17 cooperation documents between their respective ministries and institutions on the occasion of the bilateral summit held on September 24, 2026. In the economic and industrial sectors, the two countries signed the “Initiative for Economic, Industrial and Resource

South Korea’s Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment has agreed with the Korea Environment Corporation, Hyundai Motor Company, and the Korea Automobile Dismantling and Recycling Association to conduct a pilot project aimed at establishing a domestic recycling system for rare-earth permanent magnets contained in

South Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources (MOTIR) announced its Battery Industry Technology Roadmap to support the development and domestic production of next-generation batteries. Moving away from the previous strategy centered on high-nickel NCM batteries, the ministry will strengthen support for sodi

On March 4, the Korea Autonomous Driving Development Innovation Foundation (KADIF) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU)  with Zenzic, a UK Government-backed automated driving innovation organisation, for cooperation in automated driving technology.
Both parties will share knowledge and regulatory information re

On January 26, President Trump announced on Truth Social that he would increase tariffs on South Korean imports to 25% from 15%, accusing the country’s legislature of failing to enact a trade deal the two countries struck in 2025. The abrupt reversal affects automotive, lumber, pharmaceutical, and all other imports c

In a statement posted on X on December 1, 2025, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick confirmed that the U.S. will retroactively lower South Korea general import tariffs, which include tariffs on the automotive market, to 15%, retroactive to November 1. This comes after South Korea’s ruling party proposed a bill on

The South Korean government unveiled on November 28, 2025, the K-Battery Competitiveness Enhancement Plan to comprehensively support related areas from R&D, supply chain, and industrial infrastructure. 
The government will establish a 2035 roadmap for the secondary battery industry and technology by the end of 2025 t

In November 2025, the South Korean government unveiled the K-Mobility Global Leadership Strategy, which aims to make the country‘s automotive industry more competitive and demonstrate leadership in the next-generation mobility area. The government summarized the strategy in the following four elements: (1) overcoming

On November 13, South Korea and the U.S. signed a formal trade deal reaffirming the historic announcement in July of The Korea Strategic Trade and Investment deal. 
This deal includes USD 150 billion of Korean investment in the shipbuilding sector approved by the U.S., which is referred to as the Approved Investments

On October 29, 2025, the United States and South Korea reached an agreement on a trade deal between the two countries as U.S. President Donald Trump and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung attended the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Gyeongju, South Korea. While a formal agreement between the countries h

The U.S. and South Korea remain stuck on all the major details of a USD 350 billion investment pledge, President Lee Jae Myung said on October 24, indicating the countries may not finalize a trade deal in time for a summit meeting with U.S. President Trump.
“The method of investment, the amount of investment, the tim

On October 10, 2025, during the G20 Trade & Investment Ministers’ Meeting in Gqeberha, India and the Republic of Korea discussed new collaboration opportunities in manufacturing, digital, and clean technologies.
Both countries agreed to explore joint initiatives specifically in electronics and electric vehicle (EV)