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Maryland wants more biz ties with S. Korean firms: governor

All News 13:47 May 29, 2015

By Kim You Jin

SEOUL, May 29 (Yonhap) -- The U.S. state of Maryland is seeking to expand business ties with South Korean companies, its governor said Friday, calling Asia's fourth-largest economy one of the state's "most important trading partners."

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan arrived in Seoul on Wednesday for a six-day trip to meet senior politicians and businesspeople as part of his efforts to expand bilateral trade and economic cooperation.

"Maryland is open for business and our most important economic development mission is to try to do more business with Korea," Hogan said during an interview with Yonhap News Agency.

"There are real different opportunities across lots of sectors ... we've met here with large companies, but also with medium and small sized businesses as well," Hogan said.

One of his main missions here is to convince major South Korean air carriers -- Korean Air Lines Co. and Asiana Airlines Inc. -- to launch direct routes to Maryland's Baltimore Washington International Airport.

"We've talked to both Korean Air and Asiana ... we're hoping to convince them, but we haven't closed that deal yet," Hogan said, adding that such services will be helpful to the "growing Korean-American population in Maryland."

Hogan's trip to South Korea marks his first trade mission to Asia since he won the gubernatorial election in November.

The Maryland governor has drawn media attention here thanks in part to his wife, Yumi Hogan, who is the first Korean-American first lady in U.S. history.

"(Yumi) is our special ambassador to Korea, the first lady of the state of Maryland," the governor said during his speech earlier, adding that he is a "son-in-law to the Korean people."

"We have a special bond, a special relationship and we know that Korea has the opportunity to be a large and a most important trading partner for the state of Maryland."

Yumi Hogan, an accomplished abstract landscape painter, said the trip to her homeland, her first in more than three years, was meaningful, especially since it marks the first time for her to visit as first lady.

"This is the first time for us to visit South Korea after he became governor," she said. "We're very happy, very honored."

The two will be meeting some 70 of her family members and relatives later on Saturday before leaving the country next week.

Hogan and his 36-member trade and investment promotion delegation are set to visit China and Japan as well, as part of his 12-day swing throughout Northeast Asia.

yjkim8826@yna.co.kr
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