- Negotiations
The governments of China, South Korea and Japan are expected to commence negotiations on an eventual trilateral free trade agreement between the three countries during 2012 by first concluding bilateral agreements.
In December 2011, the three countries held a final joint study meeting on the feasibility of an FTA among them.
In January 2012, the South Korean and Chinese presidents announced that they would move towards negotiating a bilateral agreement between the two countries. In March 2012, the three countries concluded an investment agreement among themselves which is viewed as a step towards a more comprehensive FTA. In May 2012, China and Korea held their first round of negotiations towards an FTA in Beijing.
Negotiations on a Japan-Korea bilateral FTA, which stalled in 2004, despite several attempts to revive them, have to contend with unresolved tensions stemming from the Japanese occupation of Korea in the first half of the 20th century and Japanese resistance to lowering tariffs on agricultural imports. Any eventual FTA between China, South Korea and Japan needs to be seen in the context of ongoing economic and political rivalry between China and the USA, as Washington pursues plans to create a new regional free trade and investment agreement by joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).
last update: May 2012
Photo: KOREA.NET - Official page of the Republic of Korea / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
8-Mar-2006
South Korea’s Trade Minister Kim Hyun-chong Wednesday said the country should think twice about a free trade agreement (FTA) with China, which has yet to begin because of its possible drawbacks to local industries.
3-Jan-2006
China Daily
Japan is likely to pursue free-trade agreements with China and India as well as Australia to give it more clout in a proposed East Asian community, a leading Japanese daily reported on Tuesday.
15-Oct-2005
Kyodo
Japan, China and South Korea agreed Friday they will aim to conclude in late November talks to explore a trilateral legal framework for investment, as they failed to do so during the latest meeting in Tokyo, Japanese officials said.
4-Aug-2005
Korea Herald
China, the country’s leading export market, has expressed interest in beginning government-level talks with Korea for an early free-trade agreement.
9-Jul-2005
Kyodo
Chinese Ambassador to Japan Wang Yi called on the Japanese business community Friday to launch preparations for negotiations on a Japan-China free trade agreement.
17-Jun-2005
China and the Republic of Korea (ROK) Friday expressed their positive attitude towards speeding up research about establishing a free trade area (FTA) amid the fast-growth economic ties between the two countries.
20-May-2005
IHT
Wu Yi, Chinese deputy prime minister, is urging Japan to start negotiations soon with China on a bilateral free trade agreement, but a Japanese official said Thursday that many barriers to fair trade in China made such a deal unappealing.
19-May-2005
Forbes
Visiting Chinese Vice Premier Wu Yi on Wednesday urged Japan to start negotiations soon with China on a bilateral free trade agreement, the Kyodo news agency reported.
7-May-2005
China called on Japan and South Korea on Saturday to expedite a trilateral study on a possible three-way free trade agreement, Japanese officials said.
5-May-2005
China has proposed a study group to stimulate free trade agreements between Korea, China and Japan bringing together governments, businesses and academics.
