Korea opens Export Boom Up Korea with 530 global buyers

South Korea's industry ministry opened the 2026 Export Boom Up Korea on Wednesday, gathering 530 global buyers and 1,400 domestic companies at KINTEX in Goyang for the country's largest export consultation event, with roughly 4,500 export consultations and 100 business agreements targeted toward about $200 million in signed export contracts.

Buyers include Lonza, JD.com and Mitsubishi Electric, and more than half of the participating Korean companies are based outside the capital region. The ministry said it allocated the majority of places to provincial firms so that competitive regional businesses can deal directly with overseas buyers, extending the event through 11 national industry exhibitions, online consultations and travelling export meetings in Daegu and North Chungcheong Province.

New growth sectors take the focus this year, with around 360 buyers from bio, cosmetics and food attending alongside the marquee names. The event, first held in 2015, pairs invited foreign buyers with Korean suppliers in one-to-one meetings.

The ministry also scheduled the M.AX CON manufacturing AI conference alongside the event on Wednesday, bringing together figures from IBM, Qualcomm and Posco, as well as Rafaelo D'Andrea of ETH Zurich and Hyundai Motor Group President Park Min-woo, to discuss AI factories, industrial robotics and autonomous manufacturing.

"As the historic era of $1 trillion in exports comes into view, we will continue to expand the export base so that companies in more industries and regions can reach global markets," said Kang Gam-chan, head of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy's trade and investment office. He added that he hopes the event gives Korean companies a chance to find new markets and buyers a chance to meet competitive Korean suppliers.