South Korea 'seriously' looking to join Trans-Pacific pact following China bid, says trade minister

Seoul

SOUTH Korea became the latest nation to express interest in joining an Asia-Pacific free trade deal, with the country's trade minister saying the government is "seriously and actively considering" the issue.

South Korea's overture comes after China and Taiwan submitted formal requests in recent weeks to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), a free-trade pact between 11 Pacific Rim countries including Singapore.

The application from its Asian neighbours has created a sense of urgency in Seoul that they shouldn't be left out of a deal that looks set to grow.

South Korea has so far said it's reviewing joining the pact, but fell short of offering a timeline for its formal application.

"I think Korea is more than ready and prepared to enter into CPTPP than any other country right now," Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo told Bloomberg in Geneva, noting the government has been making "step by step" preparations to join the deal for the past few years.

He said he did not know whether China will be able to meet the high standards required to join, and instead emphasised the benefits his own country could offer.

South Korea is a "technological and trade powerhouse in the region" and its participation could "revitalise the CPTPP into a more inclusive, comprehensive and transparent" agreement, said Yeo.

Applications from both China and Taiwan to join the deal initially designed by the US to sideline Beijing have left CPTPP members scrambling to calculate the benefits, or risks, of accepting both or just one into the pact.

The development has also stirred renewed interest in the deal at a time when supply chain disruptions are raising the importance of close trade relations.

With an annual gross domestic product of US$1.64 trillion, South Korea would be the third-largest economy to join the US$13.5 trillion trade pact after Japan and Canada. The UK applied to join earlier this year.

Yeo declined to say when the government will submit a request, but said the government has been making necessary changes to domestic regulations. "I think we are ready," he said. BLOOMBERG