South Korea expected the free trade accord with China to raise its real GDP by 0.96 percentage points and create about 53,000 new jobs in the next 10 years.
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The ratification, which comes five months after the trade pact was signed, paves way for the deal with South Korea’s largest export market to take effect this year.
Floor Leaders Won Yoo-chul of the ruling Saenuri Party and Lee Jong-kul of the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy (NPAD) reached the agreement Monday morning after talks that lasted through the night.
To further appease concerns about the deal’s impact, lawmakers agreed to seek donations to establish a one-trillion-won fund for the agriculture and fishing industries over the next decade. Autos and rice remain protected.
South Korea’s rival parties tentatively agreed Monday to pass the country’s free trade deal with China through the parliament, their floor leaders said.
Within 20 years of the FTA’s implementation, tariffs will have been dropped on more than 90 percent of goods from both sides and South Korea’s trade ministry is expecting their annual bilateral trade to exceed $300 billion, representing a 40 percent increase from 2012.
South Korea has clinched a series of FTAs with major trading partners, including the USA, in recent years as part of its efforts to boost growth in the country’s export-driven economy.
Since giving her OK, President Park Geun-hye pressured the legislature to ratify the FTA with China as soon as possible, ideally before the end of this year, backed by the full support from the ruling Saenuri Party.
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South Korea was China’s fourth-largesttrading partner in 2014 after the US, Hong Kong and Japan.
