China-ROK FTA marks 3rd year as the agreement continues to flourish

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It has been three years since the free trade agreement (FTA) between China and the Republic of Korea (ROK) officially came into force on December 20, 2015.

The two sides have cut the tariffs for four times since the implementation of the FTA. At present, 50 percent of bilateral trade enjoys zero-tariff, according to the Chinese Ministry of Commerce.

Chinese Commerce Minister Gao Hucheng (L2) and his South Korean counterpart Yoon Sang-jick (R2) sign the bilateral FTA in Seoul, June 1, 2015. /MOFCOM Photo

Under the agreement, which covers 17 areas of trade in goods, services, investment and rules, the bilateral trade volume reached 280.26 billion U.S. dollars in 2017, an increase of 10.9 percent year-on-year.

The two countries continue negotiations in facilitating trade and investment. This March, China and the ROK held the second Joint Commission on China-ROK FTA in Seoul. The two sides evaluated the role of the FTA in promoting trade and investment between the two countries and reached consensuses on cooperation in the areas of goods trade, customs inspection, and economic technology.

Regional cooperation between the two countries flourishes under the agreement. The two countries' governments selected Weihai and Incheon free economic zones as demonstration areas for local economic cooperation. The two sides have promoted 40 cooperation projects in 14 fields including trade, e-commerce, science and technology cooperation, medical and health, tourism and culture exchange.

Meanwhile, China and the ROK, together with Japan, are also working to accelerate their negotiations on a tripartite free trade area (FTA).

At the 14th Round of Negotiations of China-Japan-ROK FTA in Beijing on December 7, the three sides decided to hold the next round of negotiations in Japan on issues of goods trade, service trade and investment.