S. Korean, Japanese business leaders vow to battle protectionism

SEOUL, April 17 (Yonhap) -- Business leaders from South Korea and Japan agreed to
fight against trade protectionism and work to help their governments restart
bilateral free trade talks at their annual meeting on Friday.
A joint statement signed by Cho Suck-rai, chairman of the Federation of Korean
Industries, and Fujio Mitarai, chairman of the Japan Business Federation, or
Nippon Keidanren, said the organizations had "agreed to join efforts to thwart
the spread of trade protectionism worldwide."
The two-day meeting of about 300 business leaders from the two nations closed at
a hotel in Seoul earlier in the day.
An outbreak of so-called "economic patriotism," such as the "Buy America" clause
in Washington's economic stimulus package, has spread worldwide in recent months
in the wake of what many economists say is the worst global recession since World
War II.
The U.S. has come under fire for the clause, which requires foreign companies to
use products manufactured in the U.S. when participating in projects funded by
the stimulus package.
Global trade is expected to contract 2.1 percent this year, the first decline
since 1982, according to data by the World Bank.
The two sides also "agreed to ask their governments to restart formal talks on a
free trade agreement," the statement said.
Disagreements over lowering trade barriers on agricultural goods have left the
South Korea-Japan free trade talks at a stalemate since November 2004.
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