19th Round of RCEP Negotiations to Take Place in India

28/07/2017    76

The Ministry of Trade, Industry & Energy of South Korea announced on July 23 that the 19th round of negotiations for the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) takes place from July 24 to 28 in Hyderabad, India.

The negotiations are scheduled to be attended by director general for FTA negotiations Yoo Myung-hee and about 60 government delegation members from the ministry, the Ministry of Strategy & Finance, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food & Rural Affairs and the like. During the meeting, the two sides will discuss tariff concessions, service and investment liberalization, market access, regulations related to intellectual property rights, rules of origin, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, etc.

A total of 14 working group meetings are scheduled to take place during the period along with discussions related to trade remedies, government procurement, technical barriers to trade, e-commerce, customs clearance and so on, too.

The RCEP is a free trade agreement covering not only Northeast Asia but also ASEAN member countries and India. The significance of the partnership is expected to keep rising with regard to economic integration in East Asia, removal of non-tariff barriers, diversification of trade and investment, etc.

Source: Business Korea