Leading business groups from South Korea and Japan agreed Monday to deepen cooperation in supply chains, energy security and emerging industries, as Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry Chairman Chey Tae-won called for broader economic integration between the neighboring countries.
The KCCI and the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry held their 15th leaders’ meeting at the Westin Sendai in northeastern Japan under the theme “The Korea-Japan Future Starts in the Regions.”
Chey, who also chairs SK Group, urged the two countries to move beyond a trade-centered relationship and build a more integrated market and industrial ecosystem by combining their respective strengths.
With a combined gross domestic product exceeding $6 trillion, closer integration would offer a practical response to shrinking domestic markets, shifting global supply chains and growing protectionism, he said.
Chey identified artificial intelligence, advanced industries, energy, supply chains and startups as priority areas for cooperation.
Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry Chairman Ken Kobayashi highlighted agreements reached at the Korea-Japan summit in Andong, North Gyeongsang Province, in May, including measures to strengthen critical mineral supply chains and energy security.
He called on the two countries’ business communities to play an active role in turning the agreements into concrete projects.
The meeting brought together 16 Korean and 12 Japanese business leaders, including regional chamber chiefs and executives from SK, Hyundai Motor, Korean Air and Suntory Holdings.
Participants discussed regional business exchanges, including the 35-year partnership between the Cheongju Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Japan’s Kofu Chamber, as well as growing ties between chambers in Busan and Fukuoka.
In a joint statement, the two national chambers agreed to strengthen critical mineral and energy supply chains through expanded stockpiles and reciprocal arrangements covering crude oil, petroleum products and liquefied natural gas.
They also pledged to expand cooperation in AI, semiconductors and clean energy, and pursue environmental and green-industry projects linked to the 2027 International Horticultural Expo in Yokohama.
Launched in 1985, the chamber meeting has served as a private-sector channel for economic dialogue between the two countries for more than four decades. The 16th meeting will be held in Incheon next year.
By Lim Ye-jin (yejinlim@heraldcorp.com)
