China, ROK wrap up FTA talks

China and the Republic of Korea (ROK) have initialed their free trade agreement (FTA), the end of FTA negotiations, the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) announced Wednesday in a brief statement on its website.

China and the ROK began FTA talks in May 2012. President Xi Jinping and his ROK counterpart Park Geun-hye confirmed in Beijing last November a substantive conclusion in negotiations.

The agreement will cover 17 areas, including trade in goods and services, investment and trade rules, and topics such as e-commerce and government procurement.

The MOC said in November last year that the agreement will be signed in 2015 and take effect in the second half of the year.