[KF-EAI Korea Friendship] Nam Choong-mo, CEO of Customs Corporation Sejung, 'The Global Economy and the Korean Economy in the Trump Era'

The East Asia Institute (EAI), in collaboration with the Korea Foundation (KF), is conducting the KF-EAI Korea Friendship program, an educational and networking initiative for international students residing in Korea.

CEO Nam Choong-mo opened the lecture by posing questions about the outlook for the Korean economy amidst the ironic situation where the United States, which had proactively led bilateral and multilateral cooperation frameworks, is now applying the brakes, as evidenced by the Trump administration's recent withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and moves to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the Korea-U.S. alliance. He emphasized that with the growing trend of countries adopting isolationist, nationalistic, and protectionist policies, this is a critical juncture demanding swift action from the Moon Jae-in administration. He particularly stressed the need for a significant revision of Korea's export strategy, which has historically centered on large corporations, and for fostering new industries beyond existing core sectors, along with responses aligned with the Fourth Industrial Revolution. He advised that Korea should move forward by pursuing a dual approach of free trade and protectionism, taking into account the benefits of FTAs while also considering the changing global landscape brought about by the advent of the Fourth Industrial Revolution era, characterized by nationalistic tendencies and the so-called 'evolution of the king'.