South Korea and India Sign Free Trade Deal
Posted by
Sinlung
The free trade deal struck today has the potential to nearly double annual trade between Asia's third and fourth largest economies over the next decade.
It is the first such deal by India with a developed economy. It's South Korea's eighth free trade pact.
The deal was announced in a joint news conference.
[Kim Jong-hoon, South Korean Trade Minister]:
"I just signed the historical Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between South Korea and India with Indian Trade Minister Anand Sharma who is standing next to me."
The deal will eliminate tariffs on three quarters of India's imports from South Korea, and more than 80 percent of South Korea's imports from India.
[Anand Sharma, Indian Trade Minister]:
"The bilateral trade between the two countries is in excess of 15 billion dollars. It has the potential even to double over the next 10 years. That's what we'll be aiming at."
A study by the state-run Korea Institute for International Economic Policy says the pact could boost annual two-way trade by $3.3 billion in the near future.
South Korea's main exports to India are automotive parts, petroleum products, and mobile phones. Its largest import from India is naphtha, a mixture of flammable liquids.