The government says it will sign free trade agreements(FTA) with more countries in an effort to diversify markets in the face of trade risks from the U.S. and China.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy revealed the plans in a meeting with a civilian advisory committee in Seoul on Tuesday.
In the meeting, the panel called on the government to counter increasing trade pressure from the U.S. and China by signing trade deals with emerging countries that have great growth potentials.
In response, the ministry announced its plan to expand the nation’s free trade network by finalizing trade pacts with emerging countries in Latin America, Asia and the Middle East. Noting that seven new trade deals have gone into effect under the current government, the ministry added that the aggregate gross domestic product(GDP) of the FTA partners accounted for 77 percent of the gross world product in 2016, a surge from 55 percent four years earlier.
It said that the government will soon formally finalize a free trade agreement with a group of Central American countries. South Korea recently signed a tentative trade treaty with Costa Rica, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Honduras and Panama.
The government also plans to strike a trade deal with Israel and Ecuador within this year.
Source: world.kbs.co.kr
Key words: news S. Korea, to seek, more FTAs, emerging countries
