S. Korean business group calls on gov’t to swiftly start free trade talks with Australia
Yonhap 2007/05/21
S. Korean business group calls on gov’t to swiftly start free trade talks with Australia
SEOUL, May 21 (Yonhap) — South Korea’s top business organization on Monday urged the government to swiftly start free trade talks with Australia, saying a deal would be in the interest of both sides.
The call was made at a meeting earlier in the day between Cho Suck-rae, chairman of the Federation of Korean Industries, and Peter Rowe, the Australian ambassador to South Korea, officials at the business group said.
On Wednesday, a senior South Korean trade official said the two countries will begin a joint study this year on a possible free trade agreement.
The joint study is a first step toward free trade talks, but Deputy Trade Minister Kim Han-soo said a "cautious approach" is needed because of sensitivity about agriculture.
Australia is South Korea’s eighth-largest trading partner with two-way trade reaching some US$14 billion a year.
