APEC Seminar Spurs FDIs

Korea intends to capitalize on the seminar to
publicize its strengths as an investment destination

The APEC Investment Opportunities 2005 is expected to attract about 800 government heads, business experts, scholars and heads of international organizations from the 21-member APEC economies.
The four-day event, to be held Busan, the host city of APEC Korea 2005, is scheduled to open November 14 at Busan City Hall and is expected to help facilitate investment among member economies. Korea hopes to attract investors and use the occasion to raise its image as an advanced economy.
APEC-OECD Seminar will be held on November 14-15 under the theme of "Working together on Investment for Development."This seminar is designed to enhance the understanding that participants have with regard to investment issues. Given the diversity in conditions found when investing in different countries, the forum will help lower the barriers to understanding the characteristics and differences within each respective economy, thus facilitating economic partnerships between investors and their host countries. The seminar is divided into three sessions: Part I: What is Investment for Development?; Part II: Toward Greater Economic Integration: Benefits and Challenges; and Part III: APEC-OECD Cooperation.
WAIPA Asia-Pacific Regional Investment Conference 2005 will be held on November 15-16 under the theme, entitled "he Rise of Reciprocal Investment in Asia both Inward and Outward, and its Implications for Emerging Economies."The conference, to be sponsored jointly by World Association of Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA) and Invest Korea, will bring together representatives from the national investment promotion agencies from APEC member economies to discuss recent FDI trends in the APEC region and the outlook for cross-border capital flows.
Korea will host the "Investment Representation of Korea"session on November 16 between 3:40 p.m. and 4:40 p.m. at the 12th floor International Conference Room. The country will present Korea's strengths as an investment destination, success stories of investing in Korea, status of labor-management relations in Korea to participants, including foreign investors and CEOs of foreign companies in Korea.
The Asia-Pacific promises to be a magnet for direct foreign investments as investment flows recorded $166 billion in 2004, a 55 percent surge over a year earlier. Thanks to Korea's foreign investment policies and an open-door economy, FDI is on the rise in Korea with total FDI inflows surpassing the $100 billion mark for the first time last October.
On the occasion of the APEC Economic Leaders?Meeting on November 18-19, the APEC Investment Opportunities 2005 will serve as a good opportunity for Korea to showcase its incentives for foreign investors.
Under the theme of "Toward Co-Prosperity through Partnership,"the APEC Investment Opportunities is expected to be results-oriented for both for the APEC economies as well as for the participating international investors.
Investors will be given opportunities to take a look into the information made available by APEC member economies, including their investment policies, current and future projects. One-on-one meeting between interested parties and networking opportunities with investment-related government and institutional representatives will be arranged.

Invest Korea

Invest Korea is the Korean national investment promotion agency (IPA), established with the sole purpose of facilitating the entry and successful establishment of foreign business into Korea. Nor does the Agency's involvement halt there, since Invest Korea delivers an extensive post-establishment service designed to promote the rapid settlement of foreign corporations in Korea and ensure they maximize the benefits of the Korean investment environment to the fullest extent.
The scope of the agency's activities on behalf of foreign business ranges from business consultation, market research and partner searches to accessing grants, administrative processing and resolving difficulties with government and mediating in labor disputes. Invest KOREA is dedicating to providing the kind of comprehensive, seamless, one-stop service that allows foreign investors to take root and prosper while doing business in Korea. nw