RoK, Malaysia to hold third round of free trade talks

The Republic of Korea (RoK) will hold the third round of free trade talks with Malaysia this week with the aim of striking a deal before November, said the RoK Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy.
RoK, Malaysia to hold third round of free trade talks ảnh 1At the second round of free trade talks in Seoul on August 5 (Photo: Yonhap)
Hanoi (VNA) – The Republic of Korea (RoK) willhold the third round of free trade talks with Malaysia this week with the aimof striking a deal before November, said the RoK Ministry of Trade, Industry,and Energy.

The two countries, which have held two rounds of talks sinceJuly, will discuss details of the bilateral free trade agreement from September4-6.

Both sides will focus on sharing ideas for expanding theirbilateral economic ties, along with setting details on the scope of products tobe included in the deal.

The RoK already has a FTA with the Association of SoutheastAsian Nations (ASEAN), but the country is seeking to broaden economic ties withindividual members through separate free trade deals.

Malaysia is the RoK's fourth largest trading partner inSoutheast Asia with two-way trade value reaching 19.2 billion USD last year.

The RoK is making efforts to diversify its tradingportfolio, especially amid the growing trade war between the US and China. Thetop two trading partners accounted for around 40 percent of the RoK's annualoutbound shipments in 2018.

The RoK's exports plunged 13.6 percent in August from a yearearlier, extending their on-year fall to the ninth month in a row.

If all talks underway are successful, the RoK will have FTAdeals with all of its top five trading partners in Southeast Asia, includingVietnam and Singapore.-VNA
VNA

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