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| From left, European Chamber of Commerce in Korea (ECCK) Chairperson Dirk Lukat, Ambassador of the European Union to the Republic of Korea Maria Castillo-Fernandez and ECCK President Christoph Heider, pose at the ECCK's headquarters in Seoul before a virtual press conference on the business lobby's release of the ECCK White Paper for 2021. Courtesy of ECCK |
By Kim Bo-eun
The European business lobby called for mutual recognition of vaccination certificates by the governments of Korea and the European Union, in order to facilitate business travel.
The European Chamber of Commerce in Korea (ECCK)'s requests Wednesday were made marking the release of the chamber's annual white paper, containing recommendations from European companies for improving Korea's business environment. The latest white paper contains 114 key issues across 16 sectors, including the automotive, alcoholic beverages, chemical, healthcare and energy industries.
ECCK Chairperson and Schenker Korea CEO Dirk Lukat referred to erratic changes of regulations here without Korean government offices seeking the necessary input from the stakeholders affected.
"The assurance of a consistent and foreseeable business environment will likely open up new opportunities for multinational companies including the members of the ECCK," he said. "At the same time, companies are encouraged to increase their investments in Korea which will contribute to the country's economy as well as the creation of more jobs in Korea."
European Union Ambassador to the Republic of Korea Maria Castillo-Fernandez called for a level playing field for foreign investors.
"The white paper is about easing business obstacles that we are encountering or removing them and finding solutions for European companies in Korea," she said. "Foreign investment companies account for 20 percent of Korea's exports and they contribute to jobs, wealth and the Korean economy. Therefore, we need to compete with Korean companies in Korea on equal footing."
ECCK President Christoph Heider said, "We wish to see that vaccination certificates issued overseas are accepted by the Korean administration, and vice versa, to allow all inbound travelers to benefit from what is offered to fully vaccinated people."
During the online event, automobile manufacturers called for significant changes in the conditions for electric vehicle subsidy provisions to be made with sufficient lead time, and for the administrative recognition process for eco-friendly vehicles to be simplified.
Beverage makers called on the government to allow the sale of alcoholic beverages on e-commerce platforms, citing that Korea is one of two countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development that does not allow alcohol to be sold online.
Food product manufacturers took issue with heavier punishments for companies based abroad compared to local firms, even for the same violations, such as for problems with labelling on a product.
Established in 2012, the ECCK is an organization consisting of 370 European firms that do business in Korea.
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