Ferrari, Thales Alenia Space and Fincantieri join Samsung, LS, Hyosung and NAVER join in gathering of industry leaders

  Korean participants included the heads of major business groups, including Jay Yong Lee, Chairman of Samsung Electronics; Ja Eun Koo, Chairman of LS Group; and Hyun Joon Cho, Chairman of Hyosung Group.

  They were joined by leading business figures spanning advanced strategic industries and manufacturing, including Sung Kim, President of Hyundai Motor Company; Dong-Choon Kim, President of LG Chem; Soo-yeon Choi, CEO of NAVER; Jae-young Moon, President of HD Construction Equipment; and Jong Chool Kim, President of Korea Aerospace Industries.

  Jung Soo Kim, Chairman of Samyang Foods, and Byung-Oh Choi, Chairman of Fashion Group Hyungji, also participated to explore cooperation in K-food and fashion, two sectors expanding their presence in Europe.

  Italian participants included senior government officials such as Antonio Tajani, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, as well as leading figures from across the country’s industrial ecosystem.

  They included Giorgio Marsiaj, Confindustria Vice President for Aerospace and Chairman and CEO of Sabelt; Biagio Mazzotta, Chairman of Fincantieri, Italy’s largest shipbuilding company; Giampiero Di Paolo, CEO of Thales Alenia Space Italia, a global leader in defense, aerospace and advanced industries; Enrico Maria Bagnasco, CEO of Sparkle, a leading provider of Italy’s global communications infrastructure; and Marco Petracchini, Chairman of Enilive, one of Italy’s leading energy companies in the decarbonization transition.

  Global companies in the luxury and cosmetics sectors also participated, including high-performance and sports-car brand Ferrari and KIKO Milano, a cosmetics brand with more than 1,000 stores worldwide, demonstrating strong interest in expanding bilateral economic cooperation.  

Chairman Ryu: “Building on successive milestone summit engagements, 

Korea and Italy should broaden cooperation in advanced industries”

  The keynote session featured remarks by representatives of the two business communities.

  FKI Chairman Jin Roy Ryu remarked, “Italy, the country of Galileo Galilei, the father of modern science, is a powerhouse in foundational technologies. Together with Korea’s advanced manufacturing capabilities, this makes our two countries partners with tremendous potential for synergy.”

  Chairman Ryu stated, “This year’s two meetings between our leaders and the elevation of bilateral relations to a Special Strategic Partnership are bringing economic cooperation into a new phase,” proposing that cooperation be broadened across advanced industries, including AI, renewable energy and aerospace. He noted, “Just as all roads once led to Rome, I hope the paths our business communities begin building together today will extend toward the future and into global markets.”

  Giorgio Marsiaj, Confindustria Vice President for Aerospace and Chairman and CEO of Sabelt, highlighted the common ground between Korea’s entrepreneurial spirit and Italy’s culture of family-owned businesses. He proposed that the two business communities work together to develop a long-term vision for advanced-industry growth.

Three pillars of cooperation: 

Strategic and Advanced Industries; Energy and Infrastructure; Biotech and Lifestyle

  At the roundtable, Korean and Italian companies proposed directions for cooperation in three areas: strategic and advanced industries; energy and infrastructure; and promising industries of the future, including biotechnology and pharmaceuticals, food and cosmetics.

  In the first session, Samsung, Hyundai Motor Company, NAVER and Korea Aerospace Industries participated in discussions on creating synergies in strategic and advanced industries, including semiconductors, AI and defense.

  The discussion showed that Korea’s aerospace industry is expanding wide-ranging partnerships with Italian counterparts based on the two countries’ advanced technological capabilities, including joint entry into overseas markets and the development of nex-tgeneration components.

  Korea Aerospace Industries shared its plans to combine Korean and Italian satellite technologies through cooperation with Thales Alenia Space Italia and jointly enter the global satellite export market. KAI also said it was actively pursuing technology-development cooperation with Italy to localize the power-transmission system used in Korea’s Surion utility helicopter.

  The energy and infrastructure session addressed opportunities for cooperation arising from Europe’s transition to environmentally sustainable energy and growing demand for more advanced smart infrastructure.

  In 2014, LS became the first non-European company to win a power-grid project from Terna, Italy’s state-owned transmission system operator. It recently secured an additional overhead transmission-line project valued at €80 million, extending its record of achievement in Europe’s power-infrastructure market.

  At the roundtable, LS shared its plan to contribute to Europe’s energy transition, with its R&D center in Italy serving as a hub for these efforts.

  Companies also commented on improvements in the trade environment since the leader-level diplomacy in January.

  HD Construction Equipment welcomed the Italian Government’s recent removal of a clause limiting benefits under its hyper-depreciation scheme¹⁾ to products manufactured within the European Union, noting, “We appreciate that the efforts of both governments have improved market access for Korean-made machinery and equipment.” The company also pledged to continue supplying innovative products, including smart equipment, and to contribute to the development of the two countries’ construction and infrastructure industries.

 1) The hyper-depreciation scheme provides a corporate tax benefit for investment in innovative machinery and equipment by allowing companies to recognize depreciation expenses based on an amount higher than the actual purchase price.

  The final session, covering promising industries of the future, explored cooperation encompassing production, technology and branding in high-value-added sectors such as biotechnology, cosmetics and fashion.

  In biotechnology, Italy’s competitiveness as a production base received particular attention, with the country accounting for 23% of Europe’s pharmaceutical and biotechnology contract development and manufacturing organization market.

  Korean biotechnology startup Cureverse shared the results of its US$360 million technology-licensing agreement with Italian pharmaceutical company Angelini Pharma. The company also presented concrete opportunities for cooperation in developing and commercializing new treatments for difficult-to-treat brain diseases.

  In cosmetics, Cosmax presented its plans to lead the expansion of K-beauty in the European market after establishing a local production base through its acquisition of Italian original design manufacturer Keminova.