Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Dukgeun Ahn of the Republic of Korea held high-level talks with the Philippine government delegation led by Special Assistant to the President for Investment and Economic Affairs Frederick Go today in Seoul and discussed measures for stronger economic cooperation in areas such as trade, investment, supply chains, and carbon-free energy.

Noting the Philippines’ abundant natural resources and young demographic profile, Minister Ahn expressed appreciation towards the Philippine government’s efforts to create a choice investment environment, including the five percent corporate tax cut (from previous 25 percent to 20 percent) for investment companies. Special Assistant Frederick Go responded by stating that Korea is the Philippines’ major trade and investment partner and conveyed anticipation for the two countries to gain meaningful outcomes through the Korea-Philippines Business Forum, with Korea being the Philippines’ first stop of its investment roadshows.

Both sides agreed that the two countries should expand cooperation in areas like critical minerals and clean energy amid the rapidly changing global trade environment. Accordingly, they decided to take active steps to implement the memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the feasibility study for resuming construction of the Baatan nuclear power plant as well as the MOU for bilateral cooperation on their critical raw materials supply chain.

Following the talks, Minister Ahn attended the Korea-Philippines Business Forum hosted by the Philippine government and organized by the Philippine Embassy in Korea. In his congratulatory address, the minister assessed how the two countries have established a basis for wider economic cooperation with their bilateral relations elevated to a strategic partnership on the occasion of the last Korea-Philippines summit. He added that going forward, the Korean government plans to leverage economic cooperation platforms in making intergovernmental efforts to promote smooth business collaboration between the two countries.