EU inks milestone trade deal with Seoul

European Union officials today signed a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the EU and South Korea.

The deal was inked by EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht, Belgian Foreign Affairs Minister Steven Vanackere - representing the EU presidency - and Korean Trade Minister Kim Jong-hoon.

The deal has been described as good news for Irish companies that exported €143.6m of goods to South Korea between January and June of 2010. Imports were worth about €105.8m for this period.

This FTA is the most ambitious trade agreement ever negotiated by the EU and the first with an Asian country, the European Commission said in a statement.

Today's signature signals a significant step on the road to its implementation and is one of the main events of the EU-Korea Summit taking place in Brussels today.

"The agreement between the EU and South Korea marks a significant achievement in improving our trade links," said Commissioner De Gucht.

"It will provide a real boost to jobs and growth in Europe at this critical time."

The agreement will remove virtually all import duties between the two economies as well as many non-tariff barriers.

One study estimates that the deal will create new trade in good and services worth €19.1bn for the EU; while another study calculates that it will more than double bilateral EU-South Korea trade in the next 20 years.