At a strategy meeting in Ho Chi Minh City this week, South Korea's trade promotion agency unveiled an ambitious plan to deepen ties with 730 million people across Southeast Asia and Oceania, targeting everything from semiconductors and artificial intelligence to Korean beauty products and shipbuilding expertise.
The Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) held the "2026 Southeast Asia and Oceania Trade and Investment Expansion Strategy Meeting" on Tuesday, bringing together heads of 15 regional trade offices to align on exports across seven strategic industries: AI, biotech, culture, defense, energy, semiconductors, and shipbuilding—a framework KOTRA shorthand calls "ABCDE+2S."
The region already matters enormously to Korean prosperity. Last year, South Korean exports to Southeast Asia and Oceania hit $139.7 billion, representing nearly one-fifth of the country's total exports and growing 5 percent from 2024. But the growth tells only part of the story: semiconductor exports to ASEAN alone surged 148 percent year-on-year in April, signaling where real momentum lies. Southeast Asia now functions as the world's fourth-largest economic bloc, while Oceania serves as a strategic gateway for critical minerals and energy supplies that keep Korean industries humming.
What makes this region especially valuable is its young, growing consumer base. With a median age in the early 30s and a combined population exceeding that of all of Europe, Southeast Asia and Oceania represent an emerging market where Korean brands—from cosmetics to food to entertainment—are only beginning to penetrate. Last year, Korean exports of consumer goods like food, beauty products, household goods, pharmaceuticals, and fashion reached just $6.9 billion, accounting for 15 percent of total exports. That gap signals opportunity.
KOTRA's strategy reflects this reality. The agency plans to launch Hallyu (Korean Wave) expos in Hanoi in July and Melbourne in November, and a dedicated "Seoul Food in Bangkok" showcase in December. These events will leverage cultural ambassadors and influencers while securing halal certifications—a practical detail that signals KOTRA's ground-level understanding of local markets. A Bangkok AI Tech and Smart City Day in June and an Australia smart farm roadshow in August will target demand for digital infrastructure and agritech solutions aligned with development projects in Thailand and Indonesia.
Manufacturing supply chain deepening forms another pillar. More than 84 percent of Korean exports to the region consists of intermediate goods destined for assembly in Thai, Vietnamese, and Malaysian factories, then re-exported worldwide. KOTRA will solidify these partnerships while diversifying shipbuilding cooperation with Indonesia and Singapore—hedging against concentration risk in a volatile geopolitical moment. The agency also intends to help Korean companies secure access to critical minerals and energy resources, and participate in eco-friendly projects across the region.
Defense cooperation is receiving new emphasis, too. KOTRA will strengthen participation in regional defense exhibitions and government-to-government partnerships, anchored in trade offices in Jakarta and Hanoi. Geopolitical instability, the agency noted, is driving demand for Korean defense technology.
"Southeast Asia and Oceania is a region where our companies' production bases meet a massive consumer market," said KOTRA President Kang Kyung-sung. "We will do our utmost to provide on-the-ground support so that export and economic cooperation flows centered on the seven strategic industries can be connected to business cooperation."
The expanded commitment sends a clear message: Korea views this region not as a secondary market but as essential infrastructure for its economic future.