South Korea and India plan to expand economic tie-ups in the information technology (IT) and software sectors to improve the global competitiveness of both countries, the Seoul government said Tuesday.
The Ministry of Knowledge Economy said South Korean officials accompanying President Lee Myung-bak in India pointed out that Seoul’s strength in IT-related hardware and New Delhi’s leading position in the world’s software industry can create positive synergy for future growth.
South Korean companies such as Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Electronics Inc. are top competitors in the global IT sector, while the country’s high-speed internet infrastructure is one of the best in the would.
India is a software powerhouse, leading research and development in areas such as embedded software, and with companies like NASSCOM and Infosys making headway into the global IT business arena. The country is also a favorite outsourcing destination for multinational online companies seeking software support.
“Knowledge Economy Minister Choi Kyung-hwan pointed out at a meeting of both Korean and Indian businessmen in New Delhi that the two sides can greatly benefit from working together and learning from each other’s strengths,” a government official said.
The official added that Choi, who is part of the South Korean president’s entourage, met with Indian Commerce Minister Anand Sharma and called for streamlining India’s trade-related administrative processes, which investors say are inconvenient.
“He raised the issue of India’s current policy of restricting the types of business investments it accepts and difficulty in getting visas and general lack of transparency in policies,” the official said.
The South Korean minister was also present at the memorandum of understanding (MOU) ceremonies between the Korea Trade Commission and India’s commerce ministry.
On top of those tie-ups, the state-run Korea Export Insurance Corp. signed MOUs with the Steel Authority of India and the ICICI Bank, and the Korea Federation of Textile Industries agreed to expand cooperations with an Indian umbrella textile organization.
The Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency said it exchanged MOUs with Invest India and the Indian chamber of commerce.
The ministry, meanwhile, said representatives from South Korean small- and medium- sized enterprises are holding talks with Indian businesspeople on the sidelines of President Lee’s visit and are expected to reach commercial deals worth up to US$150 million.
Seoul is trying to expand economic ties with New Delhi after the two sides sealed a “Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement,” a de facto free trade deal, in August 2009. The pact took effect early this year.
Source:http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2010/01/26/23/0502000000AEN20100126007100320F.HTML
