The European Commission today published a handy guide entitled "The EU-Korea Free Trade Agreement in practice" to provide an overview of steps that EU companies have to take to fully benefit from the Free Trade Agreement the EU has concluded with South Korea. The brochure has been presented at a conference in Brussels today and is available in all official languages of the EU.

In today's seminar the European Commission discussed with business representatives, the EU Parliament and Member States practical issues and first experience with the implementation of the EU's Trade Agreement with South Korea. It became operational on 1st July 2011 and the European Commission deems important to support and assist all stakeholders, in particular SME's, in how to make best use of this agreement. Speaking at the seminar the Commission's Director General for Trade, Jean-Luc Demarty, stressed that now that the agreement has entered into force, continuous efforts are needed to assist European businesses in reaping its benefits.
Background
The EU-South Korea FTA is the most comprehensive free trade agreement ever negotiated by the EU. Import duties are eliminated on nearly all products and there is far reaching liberalisation of trade in services covering all modes of supply. It includes provisions on investments both in services and industrial sectors, strong disciplines in important areas such as the protection of intellectual property (including geographical indications), public procurement, competition rules, transparency of regulation and sustainable development. Specific commitments to eliminate and to prevent non tariff obstacles to trade have been agreed on sectors such as automobiles, pharmaceuticals or electronics.
In early October, 100 days after this agreement became operational, the EU and Korea held their first meeting of the EU-South Korea Trade Committee in Seoul, in which both sides took stock of the success of the deal for business. For example, both parties agreed on ways forward to bridge outstanding implementation issues in the areas of motor vehicles and electronics. On motor vehicles, the parties tackled market access issues on tyres and after-sale verification rules for diesel emissions and safety standards of cars. On electronic goods, the meeting addressed the need to recognise agreed ways of testing electronic products.
 
Trade figures EU – South Korea
EU-South Korea goods trade exceeded €66.6 billion in 2010. The EU currently runs a deficit with South Korea in goods trade. However, the trends suggest that due to the significant growth potential of the Korean market and due to the entry into force of the EU-South Korea FTA this deficit will be decreasing. For products like chemicals, pharmaceuticals, auto parts, industrial machinery, shoes, medical equipment, non-ferrous metals, iron and steel, leather and fur, wood, ceramics and glass, the EU enjoys a solid trade surplus. Similarly, for agricultural products South Korea is one of the more valuable export markets globally for EU farmers, with annual sales of over €1 billion. On services, in 2009 the EU had a surplus with South Korea of €2.1 billion, with exports of €6 billion and imports of €3.9 billion. EU is also the biggest investor in South Korea in cumulative terms with 28.9 billion worth of investment stock in 2009.
 
Links:

Read the brochure: "The EU-Korea Free Trade Agreement in practice"
100 Days of the EU-Korea FTA - Speech by EU Trade Commissioner De Gucht at the EU Chamber of Commerce in Korea (EUCCK), 11 October 2011
Press Release: EU Trade chief welcomes progress from first Europe-South Korea Trade Committee, 12 October 2011
Quick reading guide to the EU-Korea FTA
Market Access Database – special update for South Korea

 

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