S. Korea surpasses target of US$ 30 bil. for overseas construction orders in 2023

’중동붐’에 작년 플랜트 수주 302억달러로 25%↑ 8년만에 최대 On the local trade front. Korea raced past its target goal for overseas construction orders last year bolstered by big contracts from the Middle East. Our correspondent Moon Hye-ryeon reports. South Korea’s overseas plant orders last year surpassed the goal of 30 billion U.S. dollars with a boom in orders from the Middle East. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on Monday that the total came to 30-point-2-3 billion dollars – up 25 percent compared to the year before. It’s also the highest sum recorded since 2015, and it was a 1-point-5 billion dollar contract to build a floating LNG vessel in Canada at the end of last year that tipped the total over the target for 2023. The ministry attributed the success to effective sales diplomacy in the Middle East – particularly the two summits between South Korea and Saudi Arabia held in November 2022 and October last year – which resulted in large-scale plant construction orders. The “boom“ in the Middle East was reflected in the data – more than a third of all overseas plant orders last year were from the Middle East. The largest overseas order recorded last year was also from Riyadh, with Hyundai Engineering and Construction’s 5 billion-dollar agreement to build a mega petrochemical plant for its state oil company. This is also the most expensive contract won by any South Korean company so far in Saudi Arabia. The United States came in a close second in terms of the percentage of overseas plant orders, as South Korean companies responded to the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act by localizing the production of electric vehicle parts. By country, the U.S. was also where South Korean firms secured their greatest sum of construction orders. It is the first time since data was first compiled in 1965 that the U.S. has been South Korea’s top market for construction orders. An increase in exports of equipment such as semiconductors, batteries and display screens to the U.S. also contributed to the country’s overseas orders meeting its target. This year, the government’s goal for overseas plant orders is higher than last year’s at 40 billion dollars. For overseas construction orders, the country surpassed the 30 billion dollar mark for the fourth year in a row with 33-point-3 billion dollars, just short of its 35-billion-dollar target. The government will be offering tailored support for companies during each stage of the contracting process to keep riding the Middle East “boom.“ The country’s deputy trade secretary said that the ministry would do its best to strengthen export growth – especially with increasing demand in new industries such as decarbonization. Moon Hye-ryeon, Arirang News. #MiddleEast #Overseas_plant #MiddleEast_boom #IRA #대한민국 #중동붐 #플랜트 #수주 #Arirang_News #아리랑뉴스 📣 Facebook : 📣 Twitter : 📣 Homepage : 2024-01-08, 18:00 (KST)