The state-run Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) will hold its second round of “Buy Korea Export Promotion Fair 2009” on Thursday at KINTEX in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, officials said yesterday.

“We have decided to hold another round of the “Buy Korea” fair in the autumn season after the success of the previous fair held in January,” Lee Han-chul, KOTRA’s executive vice president for marketing, told reporters.

The large-scale event is expected to offer a chance for local exporters to sell their products to buyers coming from around the world, he added. The fair runs for two days.

A total of 1,200 foreign companies will take part in the fair online and offline. Of the total, buyers from 700 companies will come to Korea while the rest participate in the event through the web space. They are expected to consult with about 3,000 Korean exporters during the event.

KOTRA expects Korean exporters to sign $500 million in deals during the fair.

To support troubled Korean companies running production operations in Gaeseong Industrial Park, KOTRA will install separate booths.

The list of big-name foreign buyers includes carmakers like BMW and General Motors, Ford and IT giants such as Hewlett-Packard and Telefonica. Global biotech firm Amgen also comes to Korea to find potential partners.

Some buyers, including Spain-based telecommunication operator Telefonica and Rafael, the largest arms firm in Israel, will separately hold presentation sessions to explain their purchasing policies to Korean exporters at the Invest Korea Plaza in southern part of Seoul, KOTRA said.

By Cho Chung-un (Korea Herald)
(christory@heraldm.com)

http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/NEWKHSITE/data/html_dir/2009/09/15/200909150066.asp