SEOUL, Oct. 28 (Yonhap) -- South Chungcheong Province said Wednesday it held an export consultation in New York to support small and medium-sized businesses in the province seeking to enter the U.S. market.

South Chungcheong Province and the South Chungcheong Economic Promotion Agency held an export consultation for a market development delegation to the Americas at the New York Hilton Midtown hotel on Tuesday (local time).

Twenty small and medium-sized businesses from nine cities and counties in the province, including Cheonan, Asan and Hongseong, participated in the consultation, showcasing cosmetics, traditional foods and seaweed products.

Buyers from 66 local companies, including H Mart, Bello Pharm and Red Rock Unlimited, also took part.

The participating companies held consultations with local buyers, promoting the competitiveness of their products and exploring opportunities to enter the U.S. market.

A total of 199 export consultations worth US$48.85 million were held. Seven companies also signed 10 memorandums of understanding (MOUs) worth $20.71 million in total.

Nonsan-based food company Itcho signed a $1 million export contract with Market Woori, while Dangjin-based cosmetics company Biocosone signed a $200,000 export contract with Chamis.

Lee Seong-chan, CEO of Taekyung Food, which participated in the consultation, said, "The North American market is large and favorable for promoting products, so companies have a lot of interest in it. There is high demand for seaweed and Korean food, so we will work to introduce products tailored to local tastes."

South Chungcheong Gov. Park Soo-hyun, who was visiting the United States for purposes including attracting foreign investment, also attended the consultation and supported the participating companies' efforts to develop overseas markets.

Park visited each company's consultation table to check the locations of the businesses, the products they produce and sell, local buyers' responses and the progress of contract negotiations.

To U.S. buyers, Park said, "The companies participating in this export consultation were selected by South Chungcheong Province through three months of analysis. As they are endorsed by the province and its governor, I hope the consultations will create good opportunities for both sides."

The participating companies will travel to Toronto, Canada, where they will hold another local export consultation on Oct. 29.

jwc@yna.co.kr

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