AustCham Korea Meeting with the Newly Appointed Australian Ambassador and Senior Trade Commissioner
On Monday, January 25th, AustCham Korea’s Chair, Chris Raciti and Executive Director, Rowan Petz, met with the recently appointed Australian Ambassador to the Republic of Korea, H.E. Catherine Raper and Senior Trade Commissioner, Julie Quinn at the Australian Embassy in Seoul.
The official meeting was to welcome the Ambassador and Senior Trade Commissioner to Korea and discuss how the Chamber and Embassy can continue to collaboratively work together in fostering a stronger and more vibrant Australia-Korea business community. |
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AustCham Webinar: Post-Covid Changes to the Korean Fintech Sector
On Thursday, January 14, AustCham Korea was pleased to host a special webinar examining the 'Post-Covid Changes to the Korean Fintech Sector' as the inaugural Financial Services Sub-Committee event of 2021.
The webinar included a presentation on 'Navigating Korea's Payment Ecosystem' from Soo Yeon (Sally) Lee, Global Business Development Manager at Toss Payments, and a presentation on 'Developing Payment Solutions for an E-Commerce Marketplace' from Stephen Cha, International Business Manager at Shinsegae I&C. Yong In Cho, Head of E-commerce at Fiserv Korea, provided opening remarks and moderated the Q&A session.
The full recording can be found by clicking 'Read more' below or on the AustCham Korea YouTube Channel here. |
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Farewell & Thank You to the Outgoing Senior Trade Commissioner, Rodney Commerford
As we welcome a new Senior Trade Commissioner to Seoul, we would like to extend our thanks to the outgoing Senior Trade Commissioner, Rodney Commerford.
Rod commenced his role as Austrade’s Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner for Korea and Mongolia in September 2018. His role focused on attracting Korean investors to Australia and growing Australia’s goods and services trade to Korea and Mongolia.
Having joined AustCham Korea’s Board of Directors as an Ex-officio advisor in late 2018, Rod has been a strong supporter of the Chamber and has made tremendous contribution to numerous events, sub-committee initiatives and member engagements.
We would like to thank him for all his hard work and ongoing support – the Chamber has really grown in the last few years thanks to Rod’s involvement and we wish him all the best in his new posting in Indonesia.
Reflecting on his time in Korea, Rod shared the following thoughts: “AustCham plays an integral role in elevating the business relationship between Australia and Korea and this role is more important than ever during the current COVID19 global pandemic. In my role heading the Austrade team, it was such an asset to have a strong, well-functioning chamber that could compliment the work Austrade and the Australian Embassy undertake to grow trade and investment.
What is more important is the networks that AustCham gave me access to – the diversity of people and organisations that represent the membership, many whom I may not have met with the countless events and forums the chamber put on. Finally, the spirit of the chamber – a can do attitude, embracing diversity, support to the Korean community, is truly representative of Australian values.”
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AustCham Webinar: Profit Maximising Data Science, AI and Optimisation
On January 12th, AustCham Korea was pleased to invite Eric Kim, Founder and CEO of Datacrunch Global to present at our 'Profit Maximising data Science, AI and Optimisation' webinar.
With digitalisation a growing trend for businesses worldwide, it's becoming increasingly important to leverage data science and AI capabilities to optimise your business operations. This webinar was held to shed light on the subject.
If you would like to watch the webinar recording, please contact our team at events@austchamkorea.org |
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AustCham Korea's Webinars Available on YouTube
Did you know that you can find AustCham Korea's past webinars on our YouTube channel?
We upload complimentary past webinars to make them accessible to you for review or viewing at your leisure. If you are an AustCham Member and would like to access some of the past paid webinar recordings, please get in touch with us at info@austchamkorea.org.
Click here to browse AustCham Korea's YouTube Channel and subscribe to keep track of our webinars and other initiatives. |
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Special Thanks to AustCham Korea's Remote Intern - Tristan Peart
AustCham Korea would like to take the opportunity to recognise and thank Tristan Peart, our student Program Officer from Griffith University as he finishes up his involvement with the Chamber this month.
Tristan has worked diligently and assisted the team here at the AustCham office remotely from Queensland as part of his study program for the past 10 weeks. Tristan’s support across multiple projects during the busy end of year period was very appreciated and valued.
We wish him all the best for his academic and professional endeavours back in Queensland and hope he will get the opportunity to visit Seoul soon! |
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AustCham Webinar: The Future of US-Australia-ROK Relations in the Biden Era
The Australian Chamber of Commerce (AustCham) in Korea is hosting a special webinar on "The Future of US-Australia-ROK Relations in the Biden Era" between 12:30pm- 1:30pm KST (2:30pm-3:30pm AEDT) on February 4th, 2021, to explore and facilitate discussion surrounding the implications of the US elections on US-ROK-Australia relations.
To give greater insight into potential impacts of the new presidency, this webinar will feature presentations by leading political and international relations analysts including Prof. Gordan Flake and Prof. Robert Kelly. Their opening remarks will be followed by a moderated Q&A segment, which will be moderated by Min Joo Kim from The Washington post, and include pre-submitted and live questions by webinar attendees.
Registration for this webinar is strictly limited, so make sure to RSVP in advance to secure your spot. Click here to register. |
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2021 Annual General Meeting (AGM)
AustCham Korea’s 2021 Annual General Meeting (AGM) is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, February 24, 2021.
2020 was an especially challenging year but with your support we were able to achieve many great accomplishments.
AustCham exists for its members and in turn relies on the support and involvement of its membership. On that account, we are very much looking forward to having all of our members attend the AGM as it is a great way to look back at the 2020 in review, whilst looking ahead into the future with the announcement of the new Board of Directors.
More details will be announced closer to the event date. |
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AustCham Korea's Taste of Australia Networking Event
Date: Friday, March 19, 2021 [NEW DATE]
Time: 7:00 pm – late (registration starts at 6:30 pm)
Location: Millennium Hilton Seoul, Grand Ballroom
Early Bird Tickets (until February 26): 75,000 KRW (Members) | 90,000 KRW (Non-Members) | Student Discount Rate*
Standard Tickets (from February 27-March 12): 90,000 KRW (Members) | KRW 110,000 KRW (Non-Members)
Registration: Tickets are limited so make sure to register in advance to secure your spot! RSVP will close on 12th of March, 2021. |
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| Small Business Support Program |
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January Specials from our Small Business Members
Looking for some fantastic gift ideas for friends, family, and colleagues to bring in the New Year? Or instead, a personal treat to prepare for a big year ahead?
Get inspired with some terrific January & Start of Year specials from our Small Business Members!
Featuring deals from: Australian Tea Masters, Golden 8 Skincare, Kanguru, Moonbear Brewing, The Sool Company, The Workshop, Posture 360 and Simple Spaces.
Click here to browse the January Specials from our Small Business Support Program participants. |
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| The HyNet consortium, which includes Woodside, passed an important milestone in the second half of 2020 with the opening of its first hydrogen refuelling station in Korea.
HyNet (or the Hydrogen Energy Network Co. Ltd.) is a Special Purpose Company that aims to deliver 100 such vehicle refuelling stations in Korea by 2022. The first five stations built by HyNet successfully opened between August and October at locations across the country.
Korea Country Manager and Chief Representative Sandra Park has visited some of the stations and spoken with drivers of hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles (FCEVs). She says feedback has been encouraging.
HyNet is working to address the resulting need for more refuelling stations.
Woodside’s investment into HyNet provides valuable opportunities for the company to work alongside 12 other companies (including KOGAS and Hyundai Motor Company) that are leading the hydrogen economy in Korea and beyond.
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POSCO has decided to join forces with Australian raw material supplier Fortescue Metal Group (FMG) for a green hydrogen project using renewable energy.
On December 14, POSCO CEO Jeong-Woo Choi met with Andrew Forrest, Chairman of FMG, at the POSCO Center in Seoul to discuss the vision and cooperation plan for the hydrogen business. FMG is the world’s fourth-largest iron ore supplier and the leading company in Australia’s green hydrogen business. It has declared to achieve carbon neutrality by 2040.
POSCO and FMG agreed on POSCO participating in the green hydrogen production project using renewable energy that FMG is promoting in Australia. Both companies also agreed to cooperate in discovering additional projects in the future.
The green hydrogen business cooperation with FMG is POSCO’s first step for its hydrogen business, promoted rapidly following the pledge to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 and the presentation of its vision for the hydrogen business to establish a hydrogen production capacity of 5 million tons.
The full press release from POSCO newsroom can be found here. |
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| In a farewell interview with JoongAng Ilbo, Ambassador James Choi has reflected on the major changes he’s witnessed during his time in Korea.
The Chamber would like to thank Ambassador James Choi for his work towards advancing the Australia-Korea relationship and for his strong support of AustCham, serving as the Chamber's Honourary Patron since his appointment in 2016. We would like to wish Ambassador Choi all the best on his future endeavors and look forward to continuing our collaboration with the Embassy team in Seoul.
As we mark the 60th anniversary of bilateral relations in 2021, there is a significant opportunity for Australia and Korea to work together closely as strategic partners in the region.
Read Ambassador Choi's interview here. |
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| Specialist professional recruitment firm Robert Walters Korea won the ‘2020 Job of the Year’ Grand Prize in Creating Industrial Customized Jobs for the second year in a row. The ‘2020 Job of the Year’ award is organised by Chosun Ilbo and sponsored by the Ministry of Employment & Labour, Ministry of Trade, Industry & Energy, Ministry of Science & ICT, Ministry of SMEs & Startups, and the Ministry of Gender Equality & Family.
Robert Walters Korea received the Grand Prize in the Creating Industrial Customized Jobs category in recognition of the company’s contributions to society by vitalizing the employment of global talents in Korea and progressing job creation during COVID-19 outbreak as a market-leading global recruitment consultancy.
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| The leading Asia-Pacific biotech specialist CRO Novotech celebrates its 100th employee appointment at the Seoul, South Korea office.
The Seoul office’s growth is partly due to the current trend of biotech’s moving their studies from US and EU to the Asia-Pacific region to ensure continuity during the COVID-19 crisis. In addition, South Korea is known globally for its medical research excellence, strong clinical research regulatory support from the Government, and access to diverse patient populations.
The South Korean team has completed 255 studies to date, with 184 currently active.
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| CBRE Korea invites you to join them for their upcoming virtual event: Korea Market Outlook 2021. This exclusive webinar will feature Dr. Henry Chin, CBRE’s Global Head of Investor Thought Leadership and Head of Research, Asia Pacific, and our CBRE experts in Korea.
Date: Wednesday, February 3, 2021 Time: 10:00 am – 11:00 am Venue: Zoom
The webinar will share CBRE’s forecast of what 2021 will bring for Korea economy, office, retail, industrial & logistics and investment property markets.
Please click here to register and contact CBRE at cbrekoreamarketing@cbre.com if you have any questions. |
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| Julia Mellor, Founder and CEO of The Sool Company, is a well-known figure in the Australian community in Seoul as well as a Board Member and longstanding supporter of the Chamber. Filled with energy and passion for Korean culture and traditional alcohol – Julia dedicated close to 10 years to becoming an expert of ‘sool’ and runs several brewing classes to share her expertise with brewing enthusiasts around the world.
But how did Julia’s Korea journey begin? Read her interview with Asia Options below to learn more about her experiences teaching English, navigating visa/ language barriers, and becoming a successful business-owner in Korea.
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AustCham Korea is pleased to welcome Lockheed Martin to the Chamber as our newest Corporate Member.
Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin is a global security and aerospace company that employs approximately 110,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services.
Their operations include over 375 facilities and 16,000 active suppliers, including suppliers in every U.S. state and more than 1,000 suppliers in over 50 countries outside the U.S.
Internationally, Lockheed Martin works with global customers to deliver the company’s products, technologies and services to meet their national security and citizen services’ needs. The Lockheed Martin International team works closely with each of the corporation’s four business areas to deliver the breadth of Lockheed Martin’s portfolio of products.
These are, namely: Aeronautics; Missiles and Fire Control; Rotary and Mission Systems; and Space.
Visit their website to find out more about their work in South Korea. |
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AustCham Korea is likewise glad to welcome Eastpoint Asia Partners Limited to the Chamber as a Corporate Member.
Under the leadership of John Walker AM, Eastpoint Asia Partners Limited is specializing in leveraging investor, government and corporate relationships to provide strategic advice to companies looking to grow in Korea and other Asian markets.
Visit their website to find out more. |
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