Consumers are keenly interested in items that will benefit from the new pact, such as Canada Goose winter jackets, ice wine and lobsters. (image: Canada Goose)
SEOUL, Dec 14 (Korea Bizwire) – The Korea-Canada free trade agreement will go into effect from January 1 next year. This is the 11th free trade agreement for Korea following the Korea-Australia FTA that took into effect on December 12.
Consumers are keenly interested in items that will benefit from the new pact, such as Canada Goose winter jackets, ice wine and lobsters.
With the free trade agreement, the 13-percent tariff duties imposed on jackets, blazers and jumpers will be eliminated from the first day of 2015.
SEE ALSO: Korea and Canada Near FTA in Full Force After Korean Government Approves Bill
The 15-percent duties on ice wine will be phased out in three years, with their expiration scheduled on January 1 in 2017. The 20-percent duties on frozen lobsters will be abolished immediately while non-frozen ones will have a grace period of three years.
Other import items like chilled pork (import duty of 22.5%) and frozen pork belly (25%), beef (40%), and unroasted malt (269%) will see their duties disappear within 13 years, 15 years and 12 years, respectively.
Lobsters are among the popular items that will be greeted by Korean consumers in the era of Korea-Canada FTA (image by The Vault DFW/flickr)
The 6.1-percent duties on automobile exports to Canada will be reduced in stages in three years. The duties on color TVs (5%), washing machines and vacuum cleaners (8%) will be removed immediately after the deal takes effect early next year.
The 8-percent duties on refrigerators will be phased out in three years while the 7-percent tax on tires (for passenger cars, buses and trucks) will be abolished within five years.
Canada is the world’s 11th largest economy with US$1.79 trillion in GDP and per-capita GDP of $52,000. The volume of trade with Korea was $9.92 billion last year, ranking 25th in the world.
SEE ALSO: Korea Signs FTA Deal with Vietnam after 28 Months of Talks
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By M.H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
