Yoo Myung-hee

Yoo Myung-hee served at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade of the Republic of Korea for nearly three decades. In particular, she served as Korea’s first female trade minister from February 2019 to August 2021. Previously, she was deputy trade minister, director general of the trade policy bureau, and director general for free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy from 2015 to 2019. In these roles, she designed and implemented Korea’s trade policy and negotiation strategies. She led numerous bilateral and multilateral trade negotiations as Korea’s chief negotiator, including the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP), the Korea-US FTA amendment negotiations, Korea-India Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement upgrade negotiations, Korea-UK FTA, and the Korea-ASEAN FTA. During her term as trade minister, she contributed to international initiatives to ensure supply chain connectivity amid Covid-19 and revitalize and reform the multilateral trading system. She also played a pivotal role in shaping Korea’s digital trade policy and launching Korea’s first digital trade partnership negotiations with Singapore, among others. Earlier in her career, she served as counselor of the Korean embassy in China and spokesperson for foreign media in the Office of the President. Currently, she teaches international trade, negotiation, and economic security issues at the Graduate School of International Studies of Seoul National University as a visiting professor. She received her BA and MPA from Seoul National University and JD from Vanderbilt University Law School.