Developing nations curb Korean exports

India, China, Malaysia and other developing economies have imposed greater restrictions on Korean exports in recent years to safeguard their domestic industries, the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) said Wednesday.

The trade promotion body is calling on the government to set up efforts to break down trade barriers. Businesses also need to boost the monitoring of their export markets and take necessary measures so as not to become a victim of foreign nations’ increasing import control, it said.

According to the KITA, 26 coun- tries i mposed a combined 167 import restrictions on made-in-Korea products as of December, up 26 from 141 a year earlier.

A total of 111 local products were subject to such import restrictions in 2011, down from 119 in 2010. But since 2012, the figure has been heading upward as more countries began restricting import goods in order to protect their domestic industries amid the continued economic slump.

Korea’s steel, petrochemical and other heavy industries have been a frequent target by foreign governments, the KITA said.

“India, China, Indonesia and other developing countries with a large domestic market have taken steps against imported industrial goods to safeguard their domestic industries,” a KITA official said. “To effectively deal with a growing protectionist trend abroad, the government and businesses should join hands together and beef up the monitoring of what actions trade partners take against our export items.”

In 2014 alone, 11 countries placed new import restrictions on 29 made-in-Korea products. Of the 29, India imposed eight, followed by Malaysia at four and Indonesia at three.

Local steel and metal producers were slapped with a combined 14 items under import control, followed by petrochemical product makers at eight.