Trade volume between Korea and the European Union increased by nearly 4 percent on-year over a six-month period after their bilateral free trade agreement took effect in July.

However, Korea's trade surplus plunged to US$740 million, down more than $6 billion from the previous year on subdued demand from Europe due to the region's ongoing financial crisis. Exports of cell phones and ships halved, while imports of aircraft from the EU shot up 80-fold.