Kaesong reporting regulations eased

Yonhap
7/4/2006

South Korean companies will be able to make remittances to their operations in an industrial complex in North Korea without having to make a prior report to the authorities in Seoul, the Finance Ministry said Tuesday.

The ministry said it has amended regulations governing remittances to North Korea to help South Korean companies operating in the inter-Korean industrial complex in Kaesong, just north of the heavily-armed demilitarized zone that divides the two Koreas.

Financial remittances to North Korea had previously needed to be reported to the Bank of Korea, South Korea’s central bank.

According to the ministry, a branch of South Korean lender Woori Bank that is located in the industrial complex will serve as the intermediary bank.

A total 13 South Korean companies are currently operating in the industrial complex, a key product of the 2000 summit between the leaders of the Koreas that boosted reconciliation and cooperation programs involving the two countries.

The number of South Korean companies in Kaesong is expected to reach 300 when the first phase of construction is completed next year. Seoul believes the industrial city will be able to house as many as 2,000 South Korean firms by 2012 when the complex is fully developed.

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