SEOUL: US Commerce Secretary Gary Locke said Thursday a contentious free trade accord with South Korea was a "win-win" deal for both countries and would strengthen their companies against global competitors.
"I'm absolutely confident that this US-Korea free trade agreement is going to be good for companies and workers of both nations," Locke told the American Chamber of Commerce in Seoul.
The pact, signed in 2007 but yet to be ratified by the two countries' legislatures, is a "win-win" for both countries as it "reduces tariffs, reduces barriers and make regulations and approval process faster, more transparent and more predictable", he said.
Locke, who is leading a bipartisan congressional delegation to build support for the passage of the pact, met Wednesday with President Lee Myung-Bak.The trade pact, which will remove 95 percent of tariffs between the two economies, has been controversial in both countries. The main US union confederation says big businesses would be the main beneficiary.
But President Barack Obama's administration last year won over many holdouts within his Democratic camp when South Korea agreed to revisions, including slowing down the elimination of US tariffs on car imports.
Obama's administration has put a priority on ratification this year, saying the agreement will support 70,000 US jobs and help double US exports to South Korea within five years.
The revised deal in December addressed US concerns over lopsided auto trade, the biggest hurdle to congressional approval, by introducing a delayed phaseout of auto tariffs in return for Washington's concessions on pork and medicine.
But some Republicans want two other lingering free trade pacts -- with Colombia and Panama to be pushed through alongside the South Korea deal.
Locke said US consumers and producers would see "substantial" benefits while South Korea would gain free access to the world's largest consumer market.
"The agreement is another sign that US-Korea strategic relationship is strong and growing," he said. "It will make a tangible difference in the ability of American and Korean companies to compete in the global economy."
It would lead to increased investments in Korea's relatively underdeveloped sectors such as logistics and financial and medical services, he said.
South Korea has pursued an array of free trade pacts to bolster its export-dominated economy.
On Thursday parliament's foreign affairs and trade committee approved a trade agreement with the European Union after rival parties agreed to tax cuts for small livestock farms.
The deal, due to take effect on July 1, still needs approval by the full house. Opposition legislators say they will not approve it until there has been a full study of the impact on the economy.
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