South Korea's participation in a U.S.-led free trade bloc for Asia-Pacific economies would be a boon for all members, especially the United States, the head of the Korea International Trade Association said Thursday.
South Korea expressed its interest in participating in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) last year and has since held talks with each of the 12 nations, which have already been negotiating to forge the free trade deal, in an effort to get their approval.
"Korea is already a significant trade partner for each of the TPP members and it is an integral part of the regional supply network," KITA Chairman Han Duck-soo said in a keynote speech at the Heritage Foundation in Washington.
Han, a former South Korean ambassador to the U.S., said that the annual demand for intermediate goods among current TPP members is over US$2 trillion, 60 percent of which is supplied by non-TPP suppliers, including South Korea. More than 5 percent of intermediate goods among TPP countries are supplied by Korea, he said.
"Our participation in the TPP will undoubtedly strengthen the regional supply network for everyone's benefit," he said. The 12 existing participants are Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam.
In particular, South Korea's participation in the TPP is expected to lead to Korean businesses making more investments in the U.S., contribute to job creation and boost American exports to other countries, Han said.
He also said that Korea's participation in negotiations wouldn't pose a significant obstacle in the negotiating process because the country already has bilateral free trade deals with the U.S. and most other TPP members. (Yonhap)