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FTA/Economic Cooperation
Trade Minister meets McLarty Associates' Senior Managing Director
Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong met with Robert O. Blake, Jr., McLarty Associates' Senior Managing Director leading the Southeast Asia and Climate practices, on March 15 in Washington D.C. to exchange views on future U.S. trade policies, outlook and Korea-U.S. trade issues. date2024-03-19
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FTA/Economic Cooperation
Trade Minister attends 7th Korea-U.S. FTA Joint Committee meeting
Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong met with U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai on March 15 in Washington D.C. for the 7th Korea-U.S. FTA Joint Committee meeting, where they discussed FTA implementation outcomes, future plans and held a signing ceremony on modifications to certain textile and apparel rules of origin. date2024-03-19
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FTA/Economic Cooperation
Ministers agree to expand clean economy cooperation at IPEF ministerial meeting
Trade, Industry and Energy Ministry's Deputy Minister for FTA Negotiations Roh Keon-ki attended the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) ministerial meeting on March 14 via videoconferencing. Ministers attending the meeting agreed to prepare for the entry into force and implementation of the Supply Chain, Clean Economy and Fair Economy Pillars’ Agreements concluded last year, while also pushing forward practical cooperation to enhance connectivity across the Indo-Pacific region through the IPEF Clean Economy Investor Forum and activation of Clean Economy cooperative programs, among other means. The ministerial meeting will kick off procedures for the Clean Economy and Fair Economy Agreements’ entry into force, including their disclosure and the collection of public opinion. Concluded last November, the Agreements contain measures for cooperation in energy transition, reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in industries and transportation sectors, early transition into the Clean Economy (e.g., carbon market), anti-corruption, and for strengthening the transparency and efficiency of tax administration. Participating countries plan to proceed with signing and other necessary procedures for the Clean Economy and Fair Economy Agreements’ swift entry into force. The Supply Chain Agreement and pertaining measures for cooperation to stabilize the regional supply chain have come into effect in some countries starting February 24, and Korea will proceed with domestic procedures, including government screening and Cabinet decision-making, for entry into force in April. Moreover, it is anticipated that this year will set cooperative activities into motion to maximize the outcomes per each IPEF Pillar. Slated for June in Singapore, the Investor Forum will be a venue for investor-project matching and other activities with the participation of governments, investment companies and Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) for boosting investments in eco-friendly energy, ports, and clean economy infrastructure areas for the Indo-Pacific region. In addition, a detailed cooperation program for the early achievement of the Clean Economy Agreement targets is to be launched, such as those for invigorating the carbon market, clean electricity utilization, and sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), as well as for establishing the hydrogen market and supply chain, and retraining for just transitions and upskilling. Deputy Minister Roh stated that whereas 2023 was a year focusing on concluding the Agreements for IPEF Pillars, 2024 will be one focusing on their entry into force, preparing for implementation, and seeing actual investment and cooperation happen at the IPEF level. date2024-03-18
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FTA/Economic Cooperation
Deputy Minister for FTA Negotiations attends IPEF ministerial meeting
Trade, Industry and Energy Ministry's Deputy Minister for FTA Negotiations Roh Keon-ki attended the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) ministerial meeting on March 14 via videoconferencing. Deputy Minister Roh stated that this year will focus on the concluded Agreements’ entry into force, preparing for their implementation, and seeing actual investment and cooperation happen at the IPEF level. He added that Korea will leverage on advanced technological competitiveness in clean economy areas to initiate cooperation and actively expand Korean firms’ market entry in the Indo-Pacific region. date2024-03-15
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FTA/Economic Cooperation
Trade Minister meets Singapore's Ambassador to Korea
Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong met with Singapore’s Ambassador to Korea Eric Teo on March 11 at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) in Seoul to discuss measures for bilateral cooperation. date2024-03-14
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FTA/Economic Cooperation
Korea and ASEAN to discuss FTA upgrade to enhance companies' utilization
Trade, Industry and Energy Ministry’s Director General for FTA Policy Ahn Chang-yong is leading the Korean delegation in the 20th Korea-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement (FTA) Implementing Committee meeting through March 12-13 in Jakarta, Indonesia, for assessing FTA implementation and discussing measures for upgrading the Agreement. The ASEAN delegation is led by Alpana Roy, ASEAN Division Director at Singapore’s Trade and Industry Ministry. On the margins of the meeting, Korea and ASEAN member countries will be reviewing the outcomes of past joint research projects and discussing measures for an upgrade of the bilateral FTA through a workshop on the Korea-ASEAN FTA upgrade and digital trade joint research. Both sides have been making effort to take stock of the changing landscape following the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Agreement signed in 2020 and to push forward joint research for upgrading the Korea-ASEAN FTA. The aim of the workshop is to seek detailed directions for upgrading the FTA to enhance companies' utilization, while also incorporating new trade issues like digital and supply chains. At the meeting, Vietnam will be briefing on its completion of domestic procedures for the ratification and entry into force (November 2023) of the Korea-ASEAN Agreement on Trade in Goods Agreement (AKTIGA), which is significant in that it will allow for a more stable application of the FTA tariff rate and lay the foundation for bilateral discussions on upgrading the Korea-ASEAN FTA. Meanwhile, the Korean delegation will be holding separate discussions with the ASEAN Secretariat to discuss plans for contribution to RCEP and measures for economic cooperation. Noting that ASEAN is a core partner for Korea’s Indo-Pacific Strategy, Director General Ahn stated plans to “advance economic cooperation with ASEAN through the Korea-ASEAN FTA and RCEP.” date2024-03-12
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FTA/Economic Cooperation
Trade Minister holds conference with GCC's ambassadors to Korea
Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong chaired a conference with ambassadors of GCC to Korea on March 5 at the Four Seasons Hotel Seoul to discuss measures to expand economic cooperation on the momentum of the Korea-GCC FTA concluded last year. date2024-03-06
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FTA/Economic Cooperation
Minister meets India’s External Affairs Minister
Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Dukgeun Ahn met with India’s External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on March 5 at Lotte Hotel Seoul to discuss measures for expanding comprehensive economic cooperation between the two countries. date2024-03-06
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FTA/Economic Cooperation
Korea and India to expand comprehensive economic cooperation
Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Dukgeun Ahn met with India's External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on March 5 at Lotte Hotel Seoul to discuss measures for expanding comprehensive economic cooperation between the two countries, including collaboration in trade, investment, technology exchange, supply chain, energy and new industries. The two ministers exchanged views in-depth on ways for the two countries to jointly engage in the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) and other regional networks, which can be seen as part of the Trade, Industry and Energy Ministry (MOTIE)'s strategy announced last month on pan-ministerial export expansion for 2024 by building multilevel networks with countries in the Global South on a wide regional basis. In this respect, Minister Ahn stated that the two countries need a strategic dialogue channel for discussing new industries and other economic cooperative issues on a regular basis, and that they swiftly launch the Korea-India Industrial Cooperation Committee as proposed by Korea to India’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry as a follow-up to last year's bilateral summit so as to deepen forward-looking economic cooperative ties. MOTIE plans to make progress on negotiations for upgrading the Korea-India Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) to gain tangible outcomes within this year, while also continuing to nurture an environment for Korean companies' stable local investment through local institutions like “Korea Plus in India”. date2024-03-06
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FTA/Economic Cooperation
Deputy Trade Minister chairs 6th Korea-Middle East Economic Cooperation Public-Private Committee Working Group
Deputy Minister for Trade Yang Byeong-nae chaired the sixth Korea-Middle East Economic Cooperation Public-Private Joint Committee Support Working Group meeting on February 14 at K-SURE in Seoul to assess the economic diplomacy outcomes and to support Korean companies’ advances in the Middle Eastern market. date2024-02-15