NEOM Korean roadshow planned as trade deficit persists

Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho speaks during a meeting at Seoul Government Complex in central Seoul on April 21. [YONHAP]

Seoul will host an investor relations event on Saudi Arabia’s NEOM mega-city project during the third quarter, Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho said Friday, as the Korean government is trying to tap into the initiative amid falling exports.

The Saudi Arabia and Korean governments are arranging the meeting to bring together companies interested in the project and Saudi Arabian officials.

“We have formed a basis for clinching more orders by dispatching ‘One Team Korea’ to Saudi Arabia and Indonesia, the countries where construction booms,” the finance minister said.

“Seoul will open an exhibition and investment session related to the NEOM project during the third quarter, marking the first Asian city to host the event,” he said.

The minister vowed full support for companies in areas such as smart cities, urban transportation and plant engineering so that they will win big orders overseas.

Some Korean builders like Samsung C&T and Hyundai E&C have already signed contracts related to the project, which involves the building of a 170-kilometer-long linear city, and others could also win business related to the eyebrow-raising urban development. Saudi Arabia aims to build a new city, from scratch, on a 26,500-square-kilometer desert area in northwestern Tabuk Province, which will be 100 percent run on renewable energy.

In an effort to boost struggling outbound shipments, the ministry has addressed 320 cases of export hurdles, Choo said Friday.

The government body launched what it calls a "one-stop" export support team under the Ministry of Economy and Finance to offer solutions to exporters' issues.

Issues related to logistics, customs, finance and marketing accounted for around 60 percent of the 402 cases of export-related difficulties filed with the support team, the ministry said. Among them, 82 cases remain unresolved.

Under the program, the government provides information on marketing, finance and logistics policies to exporters in cooperation with relevant organizations.

The country’s exports, meanwhile, fell for the sixth consecutive month in March due to weak global demand for semiconductors, with the country suffering a trade deficit for 13 months in a row.

"While exports of some products, including automobiles and ships, are posting sound performances, exports in general have been declining due to the sluggish sales of IT products, including chips," Choo said ahead of a meeting on export issues.

"As anticipated, the size of trade deficits is decreasing due to smaller energy imports after the winter season. But the deficit nevertheless has continued since October due to short-term issues, including trade with China, the top trading partner," Choo added.

BY PARK EUN-JEE, YONHAP [park.eunjee@joongang.co.kr]