South Korea and Canada on Tuesday struck a free trade deal after nearly 9 years of negotiations, agreeing to phase out tariffs on most imports and exports within 10 years of the deal’s effectuation. “The South Korea-Canada FTA can be called a new rule of bilateral cooperation. We have high expectations for a deepeni
South Korea and Canada on Tuesday struck a free trade deal after nearly 9 years of negotiations, agreeing to phase out tariffs on most imports and exports within 10 years of the deal's effectuation.
“The South Korea-Canada FTA can be called a new rule of bilateral cooperation. We have high expectations for a deepening of economic cooperation with Canada based on the deal,” said President Park.
“After the bilateral FTA, another framework with which we can strengthen bilateral trade and investment is the TPP,” she said. “With the synergistic effect of the FTA and TPP, we can further enhance our access to each other's markets.”
The bilateral FTA covers virtually all sectors of bilateral trade including products, customs, investment, finance, intellectual property, services, labor, the environment and electronic commerce.
After the official signing of the FTA documentation and domestic parliamentary ratification procedures, the deal is expected to take effect sometime next year.
South Korea is the first Asian country to have a bilateral FTA with Canada. Officials said the deal would help substantially increase Korea's advance into Canada, whose economic ties have been centered on the U.S. and Mexico through the North American Free Trade Agreement.
Trade volume between the two countries reached $9.9 billion last year, compared with $10 billion in 2012, $11.5 billion in 2011 and $8.4 billion in 2010. Canada is Korea's 23rd-largest export market and 25th largest-import market.