GWANGJU < invest Korea

According to Yonhap News,

(GWANGJU=Yonhap News) According to a survey conducted by the Gwangju Chamber of Commerce and Industry on the effects of FTA including the Korea-China FTA, 69 percent of import and export companies in Gwangju said that they are positive about the Korea-China FTA and that they have benefited from the agreement.

The biggest reason (47.9%) was because the companies were in a favorable position to secure export-price competitiveness due to the tariff elimination (abolishment).

Other reasons include import price reduction of raw materials due to the tariff elimination (abolishment) (29.2%) and increase in orders (22.9%).

However, 30.4 percent said that they have not been benefited in any way.

The reasons include lack of benefits from the tariff elimination (31.6%), reduction of exchange rate (31.6%) and economic recession of the FTA partners (5.3%).

For the Korea-Australia FTA that went to effect on December 12 and the Korea-Canada FTA that will go into effect on January 1, 2015, 60 percent said they will not benefit from the agreements and 40 percent said that they are positive about the agreements.

"Based on the survey, we will provide support measures to resolve issues of import and export companies regarding the FTA," said a Gwangju CCI official.

betty@yna.co.kr

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