South Korea’s top diplomat warns of rising economic competition with China

Economic relations between South Korea and China face risks and challenges due to increasingly fierce competition over technology, South Korea’s Foreign
Minister Cho Tae-yul said on Monday ahead of talks with his Chinese counterpart.
Cho arrived in Beijing earlier in the day, marking his first trip to China since taking office in January and the first visit to the country by a South Korean foreign minister in more than six years.
At a meeting with South Korean business leaders, Cho said that once mutually beneficial economic ties were seeing intensifying rivalry, and vowed support for businessmen seeking to harness market opportunities in China while minimising any accompanying risks.
“The heavy interdependence between Korea and China has been a driving force behind mutual economic growth and prosperity, but it also has the duality of carrying risks and we are bound to be substantially affected by such a change,” Cho said, according to a transcript of his comments seen by Reuters.