Korea, China begin fresh round of talks to expand FTA into services, investment

Korea and China have kicked off a fresh round of follow-up negotiations aimed at expanding their bilateral FTA to include services and investment, Seoul's industry ministry said Wednesday.

Korea and China holds a joint committee meeting on a bilateral free trade agreement in Seoul on Dec. 9, 2024. [Yonhap]

Korea and China have kicked off a fresh round of follow-up negotiations aimed at expanding their bilateral FTA to include services and investment, Seoul's industry ministry said Wednesday.

Trade delegations from both sides began the 12th round of follow-up negotiations under the FTA in Seoul on Monday, aiming to expand the trade deal to include services, investment and finance, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The ongoing trade talks are scheduled to run through Friday.

In this week's meeting, they plan to discuss expanding market access in the three areas as part of efforts to facilitate trade in services and promoting investment between the two countries.

Seoul and Beijing implemented their bilateral FTA in December 2015, removing major tariffs on products. Since 2018, they have held 11 follow-up meetings to expand the scope of the trade agreement to investment and service sectors.

Yonhap