ISDS Case Map
Korea
The inability of the US to reach a major trade agreement with South Korea signals that Europe could set standards in global trade.
Foreign companies will likely be invited to participate in policymaking processes of the Korean government. The plan is mostly aimed at preventing possible risks of a series of lawsuits from US investors after a possible free trade agreement (FTA) with the world's largest economy.
The South Korean parliament has requested the government suspend state subsidies to civic organizations involved in illegal rallies ahead of a new round of free trade talks with the United States this month.
Officials from the two sides are expected to exchange the first set of lists this week giving out the sectors which would not be opened up and those where zero-duty imports would be allowed and visas and investment would be allowed without restrictions.
Korea's Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy requested a budget of 1 billion won (US$1 million) to the National Assembly on January 1, saying that it needed extra funds to offset the harsher effects of FTAs, estimating 13,000 firms and 100,000 workers would be affected.
Free trade agreements with the United States, Japan, China and Southeast Asia would put more than 100,000 South Koreans out of work over the next 10 years, according to a government estimate.
This second of two installments on Korea focuses on the perceived impact to Korea's agricultural sector posed by a looming free trade agreement with the United States. Mark Winne explores food sovereignty and the culture of food in Korea and the priveleged role that rice has in the society. Should cost and price be the sole determinants of trade policy or should other variables such as the culture of food be considered in trade policy formulation?
The United States has dashed South Korea's hopes of a trade-off over difficult issues that block their efforts to establish a free trade agreement (FTA), pressing Korea to accept its proposal or face the consequences.
South Korea and the US are expected to miss the March deadline for a free trade agreement (FTA) as their political situations are likely to undergo changes, a report said Wednesday.
Korea is giving hints that it is ready for a "big deal" with the United States, as part of efforts to establish a free trade agreement (FTA).
