This image, provided by the Korea Customs Service on Thursday shows customs authorities from South Korea and China posing for a photo during their talks in Beijing on Tuesday. (Yonhap)
This image, provided by the Korea Customs Service on Thursday shows customs authorities from South Korea and China posing for a photo during their talks in Beijing on Tuesday. (Yonhap)

South Korea's customs authorities said Thursday they have held talks with their Chinese counterparts to discuss concrete measures for cooperation on protecting intellectual property rights.

The meeting, held Tuesday in Beijing, followed a memorandum of understanding signed by the two countries last month to enhance cooperation on IP protection, according to the Korea Customs Service. The agreement was reached on the occasion of a summit between President Lee Jae Myung and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

During this week's meeting, the countries' customs agencies agreed to elevate their working-level consultations on IP protection to director general–level talks and to hold the first such session in South Korea during an upcoming visit by Chinese officials.

China has stepped up enforcement against counterfeit goods bearing South Korean brands and agreed to share enforcement results with Seoul, the KCS said.

Based on information provided by China, South Korea plans to improve the accuracy of counterfeit crackdowns by enabling the early identification of fake goods and suspending customs clearance when necessary. (Yonhap)