South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday laid out a vision to turn South Korea into one of the world’s top five exporting powerhouse, aiming to achieve this goal by channeling the government’s efforts to boost exports via regulatory innovations and tax incentives.

Yoon outlined the vision during an event marking the 60th Trade Day, which was held at the Convention & Exhibition Center (COEX) in southern Seoul on Tuesday.

“As a sales representative for the country, I will do my best to support our companies and traders so that they can freely compete on the global stage,” Yoon said. “With your excellent capabilities and thirst for new challenges, it is entirely possible [for Korea] to leap beyond being one of the world’s top six exporting powerhouses” to becoming a G5 exporting powerhouse.

Yoon also pledged to “cultivate new leading export items by providing maximum support for research and development (R&D) to develop and commercialize world-class cutting-edge technologies.”

“We will raise service sectors such as content, tourism, finance, health, and information and communication technology (ICT) to manufacturing’s level, with the goal of entering the top 10 in global service exports by 2027,” he added.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance nominee Choi Sang-mok also expressed his commitment to support companies through regulatory innovation on Tuesday as he prepares to assume his new position.

“The government should provide tax support to incentivize the R&D sector, which can be handled by the private sector, including large companies,” Choi said at a press conference at the Korea Inclusive Finance Agency. He identified source and basic technologies, high-tech industries, and global cooperation as targets for R&D tax incentives.

He also emphasized the need for a transformation aligned with the country’s growth strategy for a ‘leading-edge economy,’ starting with support for science and technology R&D, which will be a future growth engine.

“The government has shifted the framework of economic policy to be more private and market-oriented, while redefining the roles of the government and the private sector in economic operations, including fiscal and real estate policies,” Choi said, emphasizing the private sector-led economic growth trend.

By Woo Je-yoon, Lee Yoon-sik, and Yoon Yeon-hae

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