The state-run Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency hosted a consumer goods fair in New Delhi on Thursday, eyeing the fast-evolving consumer goods sector of the world’s sixth-largest economy.

The fair, which is part of a weeklong Korea-India business forum, involved 45 South Korean consumer goods firms and Indian buyers. They held a total of 500 rounds of meetings, according to KOTRA. 

India’s consumer goods sector was valued at $53 billion in 2017, according to data provided by Credit Rating Information Services of India Ltd., a global analytical company whose majority shareholder is Standard & Poor’s.

The sector is projected to reach $100 billion next year, at the current 27 percent annual growth, providing wider opportunities for Korean firms.

K-pop’s growing popularity in India also helped promote the fair, according to KOTRA. More than 600 people gathered to watch boy band M.O.N.T. and winners of a K-pop contest held in India perform at an event held alongside the fair.

“South Korea has entered the Indian market in the auto and electronics sector, but there is a need to diversify the items with consumer goods including cosmetics and medical devices,” said Kwon Pyung-oh, KOTRA president and CEO.

By Jung Min-kyung (mkjung@heraldcorp.com)