S. Korea rules out renegotiation of free trade deal with U.S.

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SEOUL, Nov. 5 (Yonhap) -- South Korea on Wednesday ruled out the possibility of
renegotiating a free trade deal with the United States amid speculation that U.S.
president-elect Barack Obama may demand revisions to the trade pact minted last year.

The two countries reached an agreement in April 2007 after a year of
negotiations. The pact is now subject to approval by the legislatures of both
countries, but ratification has been delayed by political debates on both sides.
"Part of the pact may not be good for one side, but the free trade deal is a
balanced agreement which reflects the interests of both sides," Lee Hye-min,
deputy minister for the FTA, told reporters.
"The new administration of the United States will come to recognize that the free
trade agreement (FTA) promises balanced results for both countries," he said.
There has been speculation that the U.S. could adopt protectionist trade policies
due to the current global financial crisis, and that an Obama administration will
likely request an overall revision of the FTA, especially with regards to the
automobile sector.
Obama, who recently described the free trade deal as "badly flawed," has often
stated that bilateral auto trade between South Korea and the U.S. strongly favors
the former.
South Korea shipped about 700,000 automobiles to the U.S. last year while
importing 5,000 from the U.S. Democrats also want more steel shipments to be
allowed into South Korea.
U.S. automakers have called for a guaranteed market share, but current
administration officials under outgoing President George W. Bush say the trade
deal will not make such guarantees.
Obama's foreign policy adviser also said last week the new administration will
submit the trade bill early next year, but set several preconditions, including
the "strengthening of access by American automobile exports to the Korean market.
U.S. lawmakers have been shying away from taking action during election season,
while ruling party lawmakers in South Korea have been pushing for quick approval
of the deal by the National Assembly.
South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and U.S. President George W. Bush agreed
during an April 19 summit to make joint efforts to gain approval of the FTA by
their respective legislatures by the end of the year.
The accord, if ratified, will knock down tariff and non-tariff barriers between
the world's largest and 11th-largest economies, which did US$78.4 billion in
two-way trade in 2007.
For the U.S., the deal with South Korea would be its biggest since the North
American Free Trade Agreement with Mexico and Canada in 1994.
sam@yna.co.kr
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