Investment pact worth about 100 billion won to create 150 jobs
South Gyeongsang consumer goods set for push into China via Shanghai
Six provincial firms sign $7.86 million in export letters of intent
A South Gyeongsang Province delegation visiting China has persuaded a Korean-owned manufacturer to reshore its operations and secured an investment commitment worth about 100 billion won ($72.4 million), while clinching a string of export deals totaling $7.86 million that open new distribution channels in China for promising provincial consumer goods companies.
The provincial government said Friday it signed a memorandum of understanding with DMG Group in Shanghai, under which the company will build a factory on a 50,000-square-meter site in South Gyeongsang Province to produce automotive parts and power supply equipment. The company is targeting a 2028 ground-breaking, and the facility is expected to create 150 jobs once it begins full operation.
DMG Group established Daemyung Precision in Zhangjiagang, Jiangsu Province, China in 2006 and has since mass-produced drivetrain components for automobiles. With global demand for power transformers surging — driven by aging grid replacements and rapid data center scale-ups worldwide — the company decided to relocate its China-based production to South Gyeongsang Province while expanding into the transformer radiator business.
The investment is expected to reinforce the province's key industrial supply chain through the reshoring of an automotive parts manufacturer, while also diversifying into the high-growth power equipment sector. The concentration of power equipment companies around Changwon is expected to generate significant synergies with the province's core manufacturing industries. South Gyeongsang Province said it will actively deploy its reshoring support regime to assist the company at every stage of the investment process, from site acquisition to regulatory approvals.
The same day, provincial small and medium-sized enterprises made significant inroads into China's domestic consumer market. At an export consultation event held at the Holiday Inn Shanghai, 10 provincial SMEs met with 20 local buyers. Six of those companies signed export letters of intent with Chinese buyers totaling $7.86 million. High-quality cosmetics and health food products drew strong interest from local retail contacts, buoyed by hallyu-driven consumer preferences.
China is South Gyeongsang Province's third-largest trading partner, accounting for 7 percent — $3.4 billion — of the province's total exports last year. Centered on Shanghai, where income levels are high and consumer trends shift quickly, the province's consumer goods exports to China have grown sharply, rising from $320 million in 2024 to $410 million in 2025.
Governor Park Wan-su called the deal "a deeply meaningful achievement — a company that built solid technological capabilities abroad is returning home and leaping into a promising future sector." He added that the province would "help reshoring companies put down strong roots in the region and actively support the expansion of local distribution channels so that our consumer goods companies can continue to deliver real results in the vast Chinese market."
ook967@heraldcorp.com
