Illustrative image (Photo: Yonhap News)Hanoi (VNA) – Cambodia and the Republicof Korea (RoK) launched the secondround of negotiations for a bilateral free trade agreement (FTA) on August 31 asthe RoK works to expand its export portfolioto cushion the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy of the RoK, the four-dayvirtual meeting aims to set more details on the envisioned FTA.
The two sides will also exchange opinionson setting the scope of products, as well as other measures to enhance theirbilateral economic ties.
The two countries held the first round of negotiations in late July. Thesession came more than a year after Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen proposed abilateral free trade pact during his meeting with RoK President Moon Jae-in inPhnom Penh in March 2019.
According to the Korean International Trade Association (KITA), the trade volume between the two countries reached anall-time high of 1 billion USD in 2019, up 6 percent against theprevious year, of which 697 million USD was from theRoK’s shipments to the Southeast Asian nation.
When the pact is signed, Cambodia will be added to the RoK's list of FTApartners in Southeast Asia, which currently covers Vietnam and Singapore./.
VNA
