China, ROK start new round of FTA talks

China and the Republic of Korea on Tuesday kicked off their second round of talks on bilateral free trade. They are scheduled to last three days and are taking place on the ROK’s southern island of Jeju.

Both sides will launch working groups and plan to hold respective reconciliations in the fields of commodities, services and investment, Yonhap News Agenda said.

Issues concerning tariffs and trade volumes are reported to be on the agenda.

The first round of talks was launched in mid-May. According to China’s Minister of Commerce Chen Deming, the negotiation is expected to conclude in two years.

The negotiation will also involves service trade, intellectual property and investment, China Radio International quoted Chen as saying.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the establishment of China-ROK diplomatic relations. Currently Beijing is Seoul’s largest trade partner and Seoul is Beijing’s third-largest trade partner.