The first round of a free trade agreement (FTA) negotiation between South Korea and the European Union (EU) started on Monday with EU chief negotiator Ignacio Garcia Bercero's remarks that the talks was in a "very good" mood.

"Working-group meetings are under way...but we didn't start discussions into specifics," the EU's chief negotiator and director of bilateral trade relations at the European Commission told reporters.

The South Korean Trade Ministry said the two sides discussed on Monday the tariff removal on merchandise, services and investment and customs administration.

According to South Korean officials, the EU demanded South Korea to ease safety regulations on automobiles and enhance efforts to fight fake goods, especially those hurting sales of European luxury brands such as Louis Vuitton and Rolex, in South Korea. While South Korea requested the EU to cut tariffs on automobiles, flat panel televisions and other industrial goods at an early date and soften its environmental regulations.

Agriculture, which used to be a major obstacle to the South Korean-US FTA pact, is not expected to hamper the FTA progress with EU as both sides may drop some sensitive items such as rice and beef from the proposed deal, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency quoted unnamed officials of the Trade Ministry as saying, adding that issues including access to the broadcasting and movie markets are also unlikely to be put on the negotiating table.

Earlier on the day, South Korean chief negotiator and Deputy Trade Minister Kim Han-soo said both sides will focus on setting a time frame for negotiations such as when they will exchange offers on tariff elimination and how they will set parameters for an agreement, characterizing the process as a "foot patrol."

The first round of EU-South Korean FTA talks will last until Friday.

The South Korean side said no deadline is set for a FTA deal with the EU. However, South Korean chief negotiator Kim Han-soo said Sunday that "As the chief negotiator for South Korea, I would like to conclude a deal with the EU within a year."

The EU is the second-biggest destination for South Korean exports after China and the largest foreign investor in South Korea with US$40.4 billion by the end of 2006. The bilateral trade volume was recorded as US$79.4 billion in 2006.

Local experts predicted the FTA with EU would boost by 36 percent South Korea's exports to the region, which totaled US$43.6 billion last year.

The EU can also expect to increase by 47.8 percent its shipments to South Korea which stood at US$30.1 billion last year, according to data by the EU's governing body, the European Commission.
 
South Korea has signed bilateral FTAs with Chile, Singapore and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, excluding Thailand. It is pushing for a pact with Canada and set to conduct a second feasibility study on FTA pact with China this year.

(Xinhua News Agency May 8, 2007)