Wang Jingli

wangjingli0715@163.com

OVER 150 representatives from South Korea attended the China-South Korea forum on Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao economic cooperation held Tuesday and yesterday in Shenzhen, aiming to enhance trade ties with their Shenzhen counterparts and seeking more business opportunities in the  Greater Bay Area.

The forum was hosted by South Korea’s Maekyung Media Group and presented by Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency.

At yesterday’s opening ceremony at Shangri-La Hotel in Futian District, Chang Dae-whan, chairman with Maekyung Media Group, said Shenzhen’s development from a fishing village over the past few decades is impressive.

“Shenzhen’s GDP has increased by nearly 10,000 times since the reform and opening up. A group of high-tech enterprises, such as Huawei, Tencent, BYD and DJI, have blossomed. The Greater Bay Area initiative will bring more development potential for the city. This year, we are glad to come to Shenzhen to hold the forum and hope to help South Korean enterprises seize new opportunities,” said Chang.

Since 2004, Maekyung Media Group has held global forums around the world each year.

South Korean Ambassador to China Jang Ha-sung spoke highly of Shenzhen’s development during the ceremony, and also suggested that a new cooperation model be proposed for the new era.

“For example, we promoted cooperation in traditional manufacturing in the past. Attention should be given to intelligent and advanced manufacturing at present,” said Jang.

Wang Lixin, vice mayor of Shenzhen, said Shenzhen has close trade ties with South Korea.

“The total trade volume between Shenzhen and South Korea last year reached US$24.8 billion, which accounts for a third of the total volume between Guangdong and South Korea,” said Wang. “The Greater Bay Area initiative will bring more opportunities. Shenzhen welcomes South Korean enterprises to cooperate in fields like high-tech, education, city construction and tourism.”

Before the forum, a delegation led by Chang and Jang met with Chen Rugui, mayor of Shenzhen, at the Civic Center in Futian District. Both sides showed interest in strengthening cooperation in future.

The Korean delegation also visited Huawei, Tencent and DJI on Tuesday.