S Korea, Kazakhstan to expand economic ties

South Korean and Kazakh businesses said Tuesday they will strive to expand joint economic ventures in the energy, research and development , and financial services. Businesses attending the bilateral economic cooperation committee held on the sidelines of the Seoul Nuclear Security Summit called for greater investments and to seek new opportunities to promote mutual growth, according to South Korean (Yonhap) News Agency. Trade between the two countries currently stands at around $1.1 billion, a 100-fold increase since the normalization of diplomatic relations in 1992, with South Korea's investment in the Central Asian country hitting $3 billion so far. Related to future cooperative ties, companies said research and development in medical equipment and financial services should be explored, with LG Chem looking at a petrochemical research facility in Kazakhstan. Hyundai Motor Co., South Korea's largest carmaker, said it wants to set up an assembly line in the country that can produce small buses for the region. Organizers for the committee meeting said that ten memorandums of understanding have been reached that aim to improve power line network efficiency, industrial plant construction and cooperation in the automotive field.