U.S. and South Korea agree to free-trade deal

U.S. and South Korea agree to free-trade deal

2010-12-04 07:07:09 GMT+7 (ICT)

WASHINGTON D.C. (BNO NEWS) -- The United States and South Korea on Friday agreed to a free-trace deal that will increase American exports by billions of dollars and will push free-trade debate in Congress next year.

The Obama Administration is also seeking the Congress' approval for the pending deals with Panama and Colombia. This the first major free-trade deal achieved by President Barack Obama.

The agreement with South Korea was first sought during the presidency of George W. Bush and the follow-up negotiations won further significant concessions for U.S. automakers such as a slower reduction of U.S. tariffs on imported South Korean vehicles.

The U.S.-South Korean deal also includes a provision under which the Asian country will exempt as much as 25,000 vehicles from American automakers from its strict safety standards, as long as they meet the equivalent U.S. regulations.

The Obama Administration considers this deal as the largest to be negotiated since the 1993 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with Canada and Mexico. However, the Democrat Party has questioned the deal as it considers that only benefit’s the auto industry and not the American people.

"I had hoped for more from this White House, which campaigned on a need to change the way we negotiate trade agreements so that they truly benefit American workers and businesses," said Rep. Mike Michaud (D-Maine). "The deal reached today, while beneficial to the auto industry, falls far short of that goal."

The International Trade Commission estimated that the free-trade deal could increase U.S. exports by as much as $11 billion due to tariffs cuts only. The U.S. government added that the U.S.-South Korean agreement could also create tens of thousands of jobs for American citizens.

South Korea is the United States’ seventh largest trading partner. The agreement also achieved the promised elimination of South Korea’s harsh tariffs on U.S. farm products and the prospect of a more open market for financial, engineering and other U.S. companies.

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