Free trade on table with South Korea foreign minister
National Business Revew | Friday January 23 2009
Free trade on table with South Korea foreign minister
Free trade will be on the table when South Korean Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan meets his New Zealand counterpart Murray McCully this weekend.
This morning Trade Minister Tim Groser invited submissions on the possibility of a free trade agreement (FTA) with South Korea.
Mr McCully said Mr Yu’s visit would be a chance for New Zealand to strengthen its relationship with its sixth-largest export market.
The men would consider a timeframe for starting negotiations towards a free trade agreement during talks on Sunday.
"Talks will also focus on how we can strengthen cooperation between New Zealand and South Korea on regional and global security issues, as well as ways to improve bilateral links, particularly in areas such as science and education," Mr McCully said.
Mr Groser said total bilateral goods trade with South Korea was worth around NZ$2.5 billion a year and the country was also an important source of international students and tourists.
"Entering into an FTA would see the platform laid to develop further this important relationship," he said.
A joint private study conducted in 2007 by the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research (NZIER) and the Korean Institute for International Economic Policy (KIEP) said an FTA would offer net economic benefits to both countries.
"Given the current global economic climate, access for New Zealand businesses to a market as large and mature as Korea is important to economic growth and confidence," Mr Groser said.
