Thailand-South Korea economic partnership agreement nears completion

He was speaking to the media following discussions with South Korean Trade Minister Jeong In-kyo during the APEC Economic Leaders’ meeting in Lima, Peru.

Pichai said that both Thailand and South Korea have agreed to boost their economic partnership next year and expect the  agreement to be signed during the 36th APEC summit, which South Korea is to host.

The agreement aims to further expand markets for goods, services and investment from the current agreements, such as the ASEAN-Korea Free Trade Agreement (AKFTA) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), he explained.

He added that the Thailand-South Korea EPA would result in new collaborations especially in digital trade and the supply chain.

Pichai further explained that Thailand has asked South Korea to open its market to high-quality agricultural products, such as mangos, mangosteens, pineapples, fresh and processed shrimps and chicken.

Thailand has also invited South Korean entrepreneurs to invest in the country to further expand trade and investment, especially in Thailand’s target industries like electric vehicles, batteries and semiconductors and in the medical, biotechnology, digital and creative industries.

Additionally, Thailand has discussed with South Korea on resuming the Joint Trade Committee ministerial meeting aimed at addressing challenges to facilitate trade and investment, he said, adding that Thailand is ready to host the meeting early next year.

South Korea was recognised as Thailand’s 12th trade partner in 2023, with US$14.74 billion (516.29 billion baht) in trade value. Of the total trade, $6.07 billion (212.62 billion baht) were Thailand’s exports and $8.67 billion (303.70 billion baht) were imports.

Bilateral trade in the first nine months of this year was $11.47 billion (401.83 billion baht), made up of  $4.55 billion (159.41 billion baht) in exports and $6.92 billion (242.45 billion baht) in imports.