South Korea, Colombia Look To Complete FTA This Year

At a summit meeting in Seoul between South Korea’s President, Lee Myung-bak, and Colombia’s President, Juan Manuel Santos Calderon, it was agreed that the two sides would make an effort to conclude the proposed South Korea-Colombia free trade agreement (FTA) by the end of this year.

It is likely that the two men also discussed their countries’ respective pending FTAs with the United States, and the continued delays being experienced in the latter’s ratification process.

The successful conclusion of an FTA with Colombia would form a significant part of South Korea’s designs on expanding its trade relationships in South America. Its government welcomes all opportunities to secure further stable sources of commodities, while finding additional foreign markets, particularly for its auto and electronics manufacturers.

South Korea signed an FTA with Peru in November last year, its second such agreement in South America, after the first with Chile became effective in 2004. In addition, it is looking at a further bilateral FTA in the region with Mexico, and a multinational agreement with Mercosur, the South American common market.

September 16, 2011

Source: Tax News