Korea, Chile launch 8th round of FTA upgrade negotiations

The eighth round of negotiations for modernizing the Korea-Chile Free Trade Agreement (FTA) will take place in Seoul from November 29 to December 1.

The negotiations aim to strengthen the trade partnership between the two countries, reflecting new trade norms and addressing emerging areas of cooperation.

Chile was Korea's first FTA partner, with the initial agreement taking effect in 2004. Since then, bilateral trade has increased fivefold, demonstrating the significant impact of the FTA on economic relations.

The current modernization efforts are guided by a principled agreement to align the FTA with evolving trade norms.

Both countries seek to expand cooperation beyond goods, encompassing areas such as energy, minerals, small and medium enterprises (SMEs), trade facilitation, intellectual property rights, the digital economy, environment, labor, gender equality and anti-corruption.

Korea views the FTA upgrade as an opportunity to strengthen its access to Chile's world-leading lithium reserves and mineral resources. Securing these resources is crucial for Korea's renewable energy transition and economic growth.

In the negotiation, both sides will prioritize discussions on intellectual property rights, environment, and energy-minerals cooperation, alongside goods concessions. They will also strive to advance negotiations in other areas.

Korea's chief delegate is Ahn Chang-yong,  FTA Policy Planning Director at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Chile's chief delegate is Pablo Urria, acting Director for Bilateral Economic Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

"We have reached significant agreement in some areas during the negotiations," said Director-General Ahn.

"In this round, we plan to focus on discussing intellectual property rights, environment and energy-minerals cooperation, along with goods concessions, and we will make every effort to advance negotiations in other areas as well," he added.

Write to Han-Shin Park at phs@hankyung.com