Canada Signs First Free Trade Agreement With An Asian Nation

President Park Geun-Hye of South Korea and Prime Minister Steven Harper of Canada formally signed the Canada-South Korea Free Trade Agreement (CKFTA) on Monday, September 22, 2014. The agreement is the first free trade agreement that Canada has signed with an Asian nation and was signed the same week as the final details of the Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement (CETA) are expected to be released. The agreement is comprehensive and, in addition to dealing with tariff reduction, general rules are implemented to reduce trade barriers and provide for national treatment.

Tariff reduction

The agreement, once fully implemented, will eliminate virtually all tariffs on goods between Canada and South Korea. However, before implementation, the agreement must be endorsed by the Canadian parliament and some tariff reductions will be phased in.