Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo, back row left, speaks at a meeting with Mexican Ambassador to Korea Carlos Penafiel Soto, back row right, in Seoul, April 30. Courtesy of Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources
Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo said Friday he will visit Mexico next week as part of a concerted effort to broaden outreach for the resumption of free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations between Korea and Mexico.
Yeo plans to hold meetings with key Mexican officials during his trip, including the secretary of economy and lawmakers, to call for the swift resumption of bilateral FTA talks and address Korean companies' concerns over the planned review of the trilateral trade pact among Mexico, the United States and Canada, according to his office.
"Our companies have been facing considerable challenges with recent changes in Mexico's trade policy," Yeo said in a meeting with Korean companies operating in the Latin American nation ahead of his trip.
Mexico has served as a major manufacturing hub for Korean companies, helping them import intermediate goods to produce finished goods in Mexico for export to the rest of North America under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).
Recently, however, Korean companies have been facing heightened uncertainties there due to the upcoming review of the USMCA.
Mexico's tariff hikes on imports of automobiles, auto parts, textiles, steel and other goods from countries that do not have an FTA with the country this year have also made business conditions unfavorable for Korean firms.
"The Korea-Mexico FTA is an urgent task that we must pursue not merely as a means of economic cooperation but to restore our companies' export competitiveness and create a stable business environment for them," Yeo said, vowing "utmost" efforts to swiftly resume FTA negotiations with Mexico.
Source: Korea Times News
