Impact of Korean goods is etched in Indian minds: FM

Sitharaman asks ADB chief to support India with more concessional climate finance

- Gulveen Aulakh

Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman kicked off a four-day visit to South Korea with a meeting with Samsung Electronics chief financial officer Hark Kyu Park on Tuesday on the sidelines of the annual meeting of the Asian Development Bank.

The finance minister also met with ADB president Masatsugu Asakawa followed by interactions with the Indian diaspora and potential investors in marine products.

“Global CFO of @Samsung Electronics, Hark Kyu Park, called on Union finance minister @nsitharaman on the sidelines of #ADBAnnualMeetings, in Incheon, South Korea.

Discussions between the two were around future investment in cutting edge technology in India," the finance minister’s office said in a Twitter post on Tuesday.

Samsung is one of the largest consumer electronics manufacturers in India, having set up base more than two decades ago.

While details of the meeting with Samsung’s Park were not made public, Sitharaman, in an interaction with the Indian community, said Samsung was among South Korean brands that had made inroads into the Indian consumer market and created massive brand recall — a trend that was now being seen with car maker Kia Motors and companies making skincare products.

“The impact of South Korea in India and of Korean-made goods is absolutely etched in people’s minds. Many of us who want to buy Apple will buy Apple, but for non-Apple buyers, the brand recall is for Samsung," she said.