Korea Pushes for FTAs with China, New Zealand, Vietnam

By the end of this year, Seoul hopes to add three more free trade pacts to its growing list.

Presiding over a government policy meeting Thursday, Prime Minister Chung Hong-won said the government would press to conclude bilateral trade agreements with China, New Zealand and Vietnam over the next two-and-a-half months.

During summit talks in Seoul earlier this month, Seoul and Hanoi reaffirmed their commitment to seal the deal by the end of 2014. Meanwhile, Korea and New Zealand wrapped up their ninth round of free trade talks in Seoul on Thursday.

Korea is inching closer to an agreement with Beijing, although differences remain over the terms for industrial goods and agricultural products.