Korea Makes Trade Deal With US

Posted by Matt Hopkins|7 December 2010

In what is being touted as one of the most significant trade deals since the North Atlantic Free Trade Agreement, the US and Korea have agreed on an expansive trade agreement that will allow the duty-free exchange of agriculture products, among other things.

Korea is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, and its burgeoning middle class are driving consumption trends for food imports, most notably dried grains.

The agreement provides that feed corn from the US receive immediate duty-free treatment. In addition, Korea’s WTO bound rate for dried distillers grains (DDGS) is currently 6.6 percent. The FTA provides immediate duty-free access for DDGS into the Korean market. Value-added corn products such as pork exports are also anticipated to increase significantly under the agreement. In 2010, South Korea imported 351,389 metric tons of dried distillers grains from the United States. The International Dairy Foods Association also issued a statement embracing the deal.

And the deal is not just a one-way street for the US. Economists predict the deal will bolster Korea’s GDP 0.6% per year for the next decade.