President Lee Jae-myung, on a state visit to Brazil, proposed a "future industry alliance" combining Korea's advanced manufacturing technology with Brazil's abundant resources. Setting next-generation commercial aircraft co-development, critical mineral supply chain construction, and K-beauty market expansion as new pillars of cooperation, the two countries established a goal of doubling bilateral trade, currently at about $14.3 billion (about 20 trillion won), within two years. By concretizing procedures for Brazilian beef and pork to access the Korean market, the move is being assessed as a signal to resume Korea-Mercosur (Southern Common Market) free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations.
In a keynote address at the Korea-Brazil Business Roundtable (BRT) held in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on the 28th, President Lee stressed, "If Korea's unrivaled innovative technology and manufacturing capabilities join forces with Brazil's abundant resources, the two countries can leap forward as optimal partners leading stable supply chains and future industries."
In the aerospace sector, the two sides opened the possibility of jointly developing next-generation commercial aircraft. Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) and Embraer, Brazil's company that ranks among the world's top three commercial aircraft makers, signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for comprehensive cooperation in the commercial aircraft and aerospace sectors. The goal is to combine Brazil's small- and mid-sized commercial aircraft manufacturing capabilities with Korea's aviation manufacturing technology to enhance cooperation on joint development projects in commercial aircraft, structures, and future aviation mobility.
In the critical minerals sector, a win-win model is being pursued that goes beyond simply importing raw materials to building supply chains locally in Brazil. POSCO International signed an MOU with Brazilian mining company Meteoric Resources to secure rare earth supply chains.
K-beauty also emerged as a new pillar of consumer goods cooperation between the two countries. Brazil is the largest cosmetics market in Latin America, but the complex product registration and licensing procedures of ANVISA, the national health surveillance agency, have been cited as obstacles to Korean companies' entry. Kim Yong-beom, head of the Presidential Office of Policy Planning, said at a local briefing that day, "We have agreed to consult with the Brazilian government on improving the relevant procedures," adding, "Going forward, we will support K-beauty's entry into Latin America by pursuing an online promotional exhibition with the e-commerce platform Shopee." In the bio-health sector, SK Biopharmaceuticals, which established a joint venture last year with Eurofarma, Brazil's largest pharmaceutical company, signed an MOU on artificial intelligence-based digital healthcare cooperation, bringing the total number of MOUs signed between companies of the two countries to seven.
Apart from the MOUs, major companies including Hyundai Motor also showed enthusiasm for entering the Brazilian market. Kim said, "Hyundai Motor plans to pursue technological cooperation on green hydrogen production, hydrogen trucks, and small modular reactors (SMR)." Chung Euisun, chairman of Hyundai Motor Group, who attended the BRT, expressed his determination when asked by reporters about the outlook for the Brazilian market, saying, "China is also making a strong push (into the market)," and "we still have a long way to go." Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics decided to strengthen cooperation in line with the direction of the Brazilian government's digital transformation policy. The event that day was attended by 14 business leaders, including Chairman Chung, Ryu Jin, chairman of the Federation of Korean Industries, Chang In-hwa, chairman of POSCO, and Cho Won-tae, chairman of Korean Air.
The two governments also decided to operate a dedicated consultation channel to resolve tariffs and regulations that obstruct corporate activities. President Lee pointed out, "If tariff or regulatory issues are not resolved at the government level, cooperation between companies is not easy." Accordingly, a dedicated system will be created, centered on Kim and Brazilian Vice President Geraldo Alckmin, to regularly coordinate corporate difficulties and operate a consultation platform. At the previous day's summit, President Lula "conveyed to Kim and Vice President Alckmin that the two countries should double their trade volume within the next two years," Kim said.
Procedures for market access for agricultural and livestock products between the two countries were also concretized. In the joint statement from the two countries' summit released that day, the Korean government decided to conduct an on-site beef technical inspection in Brazil in August. There are also plans to expand Brazilian pork imports beyond the state of Santa Catarina, where imports are currently permitted. The joint statement included the phrase to produce "timely, concrete and mutually satisfactory results." Kim assessed this as "considerably more advanced language" than the agreement reached during President Lula's visit to Korea last February.
This is expected to serve as a stepping stone for Mercosur negotiations. Mercosur is South America's largest economic community, comprising Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay, among others. As these countries have been demanding the opening of beef and grain markets, negotiations in these contentious areas had failed to make progress. Since the joint statement agreed to announce the resumption of negotiations at the 69th Mercosur Summit in December this year, discussions on market opening are expected to gain momentum.
However, as backlash from the domestic agriculture and livestock industry is anticipated, President Lee stressed, "It is true there are complex interests surrounding market opening, but it must be coordinated in a direction that benefits both countries."
