Starting next week South Korea and Ecuador will kick off negotiations for a bilateral free trade agreement according to announcements from the two country’s trade ministers in Seoul.
The FTA talks declaration comes after nearly two years has passed since the countries wrapped up a joint feasibility study in mid 2013.
Korea sees Ecuador as an opening to the rest of South America.
“Ecuador is expected to become a gateway for our companies to the large Central and South American markets as the country has an FTA with MERCOSUR, a regional economic bloc of South American countries,” according to a release from the trade ministry.
At present there are five full MERCOSUR members: Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela.
If the deal is inked, this will be Ecuador’s first FTA with an Asian nation.
Bilateral trade between the two countries has seen a steady rise going $399 million in 2006 to some $1.15 billion in 2014.
However, last years numbers showed South Korea’s exports dropping 11.8 percent on-year to $812 million while its imports from Ecuador went in the opposite direction, shooting up to an astounding $342 million from $48 million the year before.
Crude oil and related products account for 58 percent of Ecuador’s exports. Ecuador is a also major exporter of bananas (9 percent); fish (11 percent) and coffee (4 percent).
