The industry ministry launched an exhibition on carbon neutrality Wednesday to promote various zero-emission products and technologies, and to explore future policy directions for the goal, officials said.

The inaugural Carbon Neutrality Expo began its three-day run at KINTEX convention center in Ilsan, northwest of Seoul, bringing together some 300 local companies, provincial governments and state-run institutions, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

The firms presented a variety of products adopting new renewable energy resources and their zero-emission projects, and the ministry invited some 60 buyers from 55 countries to help smaller firms make inroads into overseas markets, it added.

"The government will actively support the private sector for its carbon neutrality drive so as to create new chances of growth for our economy and industry," Vice Industry Minister Park Ki-young said.

Last week, South Korea raised the level of its greenhouse gas reduction goal from 26.3 percent to 40 percent by 2030 compared with 2018 levels as part of its broader aim to go carbon neutral by 2050.

But South Korean firms have voiced concerns the government's goal is too ambitious for them to meet, given the manufacturing sector accounts for nearly 30 percent of the country's economy. (Yonhap)