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Busan Metropolitan City Hosts 2026 Overseas Buyer Invitation Trade Consultation Meeting to Support New Market Expansion and Export Growth

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Busan Metropolitan City and the Busan Economic Promotion Agency announced that they held the 2026 Overseas Buyer Invitation Trade Consultation Meeting at Lotte Hotel Busan at 10:00 a.m. on June 23.

The event was organized to provide local companies with export consultation opportunities covering both established and emerging markets through the cooperative network of Busan Metropolitan City's overseas trade offices, while supporting the diversification of export markets and the development of new overseas business partners.

Hosted by Busan Metropolitan City and organized by the Busan Economic Promotion Agency, the consultation meeting is one of the city's flagship programs supporting the global expansion of local companies and has been held annually for 13 consecutive years since 2014.

The event welcomed 49 buyers from 10 countries, including the United States, China, Japan, and Vietnam, where Busan Metropolitan City's overseas trade offices are located, as well as buyers from ASEAN countries, India, and the United Arab Emirates. They participated in a total of 387 one-on-one business consultations with representatives from 124 local companies.

The consultations covered a broad range of industrial and consumer products, including shipbuilding equipment, electrical and electronic products, steel products, machinery, beauty products, food and beverages, and household goods.

To reduce the financial burden on participating companies, Busan Metropolitan City provided interpretation services and other consultation support free of charge. Export specialists from the Busan Export One-Stop Support Center also offered on-site export consulting to help resolve exporters' business challenges.

This year's event was especially significant as it invited buyers from high-potential emerging markets for the first time, making it the largest consultation meeting ever held and further expanding opportunities for local companies to diversify their export markets and strengthen their global market presence.

In particular, buyers from India, one of the world's fastest-growing major economies with a vast domestic market, and from the United Arab Emirates, a strategic gateway to the Middle East, participated for the first time, creating new opportunities for local businesses to enter emerging markets.

The consultation meeting resulted in 387 business consultations, with export contracts valued at approximately USD 55.3 million currently under negotiation. In addition, six memorandums of understanding were signed, including one with the United Kingdom, two with India, two with China, and one with Indonesia.

The Busan Export Companies Association also signed a memorandum of understanding with H MART, a United Kingdom-based distributor of Asian food products, to expand access to the European market. In addition, Company D, a specialist in water treatment plants, signed an agreement with Company M of Indonesia to pursue an export contract valued at USD 14 million.

Following the consultation meeting, Busan Metropolitan City plans to continue supporting follow-up consultations and post-meeting business management between overseas buyers and local companies through its overseas trade offices so that business discussions can lead to tangible export results.

Busan Metropolitan City also held a meeting on enhancing the operation of its overseas trade offices, where participants shared operational achievements and discussed ways to strengthen business support functions and expand the use of the city's overseas network.

Going forward, Busan Metropolitan City plans to further expand overseas marketing initiatives centered on its overseas trade offices in Los Angeles, Shanghai, Qingdao, Osaka, and Ho Chi Minh City. These initiatives will include customized virtual export consulting that connects local companies with local experts in certification, customs clearance, and distribution channels, as well as consumer goods pop-up stores, support for entry into online retail platforms, and promotional activities for products from emerging growth industries.

Kim Bong-cheol, Assistant Mayor of Digital Economy Office, said, "This Overseas Buyer Invitation Trade Consultation Meeting provided a valuable opportunity for local companies to meet leading international buyers face-to-face, generate meaningful export outcomes, and explore opportunities to enter new markets. Busan Metropolitan City will continue expanding its global network through its overseas trade offices and actively support Busan companies in entering overseas markets and increasing exports."