Trade and Investment Minister Andrew Robb has announced that Australia’s Free Trade Agreement with South Korea will enter into force on 12 December 2014.
The announcement follows a vote by the Korean National Assembly in support of the Korea-Australia Free Trade Agreement (KAFTA), and an ‘exchange of notes’ between Australia’s Ambassador in Seoul and the Korean Government, agreeing to the date for entry into force.
Robb said seeing KAFTA enter into force before the end of the year was an important objective of the Abbott Government.
“KAFTA’s entry into force at this time will mean that many Australian exporters will benefit from an immediate tariff cut by Korea, and a further tariff cut on 1 January 2015; shoring up our competitiveness in our third largest export market,” Robb said.
Under KAFTA, tariffs will be eliminated on 84 per cent of Korea’s imports (by value) from Australia immediately on 12 December. On full implementation of the Agreement, 99.8 percent of Australian goods exports will enter Korea duty free.
“KAFTA is expected to result in an annual boost to the economy of close to $650 million when fully implemented. It’s also projected to create many thousands of jobs over the next decade, helping to underwrite our prosperity for years to come,” Robb said.
Given Korea is Australia’s fourth-largest trading partner – with bilateral trade worth more than $34 billion in 2013-14 – Robb said KAFTA will increase export opportunities across a wide range of industries: from beef, wheat, sugar, dairy, wine, horticulture and seafood, to automotive suppliers, and the resources and energy industries. It will also open up significant opportunities for service providers.
KAFTA was signed in Seoul in April by Robb and his Korean counterpart, Minister for Trade, Industry and Energy Yoon Sang-jik.