Mexico Begins Free Trade Agreement Negotiations with South Korea

The Secretary of Economy, Tatiana Clouthier, received the South Korean Minister of Trade, Han-koo Yeo, to sign the agreement to begin negotiations.

The Secretary of Economy, Tatiana Clouthier, informed that Mexico has begun negotiations with South Korea to finalize a free trade agreement between the two nations.

"We began negotiations to crystallize the Free Trade Agreement between Korea and Mexico, we are looking for our nations to face challenges and economic opportunities together," Clouthier wrote on her Twitter account.

For this, the official received today at the offices of the Ministry of Economy Han-koo Yeo, Minister of Trade of South Korea for the signing of the agreement to start negotiations.

At the end of last year, the Undersecretary of Commerce of the Ministry of Economy, Luz María de la Mora, indicated that they wanted to start negotiations as soon as possible with South Korea for a state-of-the-art bilateral agreement.

The Ministry of Economy detailed that with the agreement to start negotiations they seek to consolidate a modern Mexico-Korea FTA that will allow them to face the challenges and take advantage of the opportunities of the 21st century, establishing an institutional framework that reduces barriers in the trade of goods and services, and facilitates mutual investment and technological exchange.

"The FTA will lay a solid foundation for strengthening cooperation on emerging trade-related issues, including supply chain resilience, environmental sustainability, and digital transformation," the agency said.

Mexico and Korea expect to hold a preliminary meeting this month with the aim of holding the first round of negotiations in the first half of the year.

Since 2006, South Korea has sought closer trade ties with Mexico with a free trade agreement, but it has failed to materialize, as negotiations had been suspended.

According to the Mexican government, the relationship with South Korea is increasingly relevant in the search for and construction of new linkage schemes with Asia-Pacific and Southeast Asia, at a time when international economic dynamics are directed towards this regional pole amid growing protectionist tendencies.

Korea is Mexico's 6th largest trading partner worldwide and our country is the 1st in Latin America for the Asian country.

Data from the Ministry of Economy indicate that in Mexico there are more than 2,000 companies with South Korean investment in their capital stock, including Samsung, LG, Kores, Kepco, Kogas, Posco, Hyundai and KIA.