UK-South Korea to Sign Free Trade Agreement to Come Into Effect After Brexit

Britain and South Korea are all set to sign a free trade agreement to come into effect after Britain leaves the EU on October 31. According to the British government, the trade deal between UK and South Korea aims to replicate the trade deal South Korea has in place with the EU. In 2018, £14.6 billion worth of trade took place between the UK and South Korea.

The trade deal is expected to be signed between South Korean Minister of Trade Yoo Myung-Hee and British Trade Minister Liz Truss later today. According to a statement by Yoo, “In this challenging time, we took a proactive step, and as a result, our Free Trade Agreement … sends a signal to the world of our strong, collective support for free, open, rules-based trade.”

Britain has been trying to replicate trade agreements that it had with other countries similar to the EU’s arrangements, but the uncertainties surrounding how and when Brexit would happen have hampered progress on this front so far. So far, the UK government has signed trade continuity agreements that would impact trade worth £89 billion, up from £39 billion in March.