President Yoon Seok-yeol said on the 5th, “The government will mobilize all export support capabilities to become one of the top five export powerhouses by 2026.” ) to further expand our FTA network.”
President Yoon said this in a congratulatory speech at the 59th Trade Day ceremony held at COEX in Samseong-dong on the same day. An official from the President’s Office explained, “Currently, the gross domestic product (GDP) of countries connected to Korea through FTAs is at the level of 70-80% of the world.”
Compared to Europe, Asia and North America, the Middle East, Central and South America, and Africa are considered regions that have a greater impact on trade expansion through new FTAs. There are no countries in Africa that operate FTAs with us. In the Middle East, the Korea-Israel FTA entered into force on the 1st. In Central and South America, Chile, Colombia, Peru, and five Central American countries (Panama, Costa Rica, Honduras, El Salvador, and Nicaragua) signed free trade agreements with Korea.
Korea is negotiating FTAs with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), a cooperative body of six countries including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman, and Bahrain, and the South American Common Market (MERCOSUR), which ‘n includes Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay. The official said, “FTA negotiations with some countries in the Middle East and South America are underway, and we will propose an FTA in Africa after case studies.”
In addition, President Yoon said, “We must actively cultivate nuclear power, defense, infrastructure construction, and K content, which has confirmed our potential in Egypt, Poland, and Saudi Arabia, as our new main export industries .”
Correspondent Kim In-yeop inside@hankyung.com
