New Republic of Korea Ambassador Addresses Chamber Audience, Promotes U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement

The Chamber hosted his Excellency Dr. Han Duk-soo, new Ambassador of the Republic of Korea, for a luncheon in Dallas on October 26. His Excellency gave a presentation on Korea-U.S. economic relations and the prospects for the 21st century. Prior to the luncheon, a VIP reception was held in honor of the Ambassador's visit. The Consul General of the Republic of Korea in Houston, the Honorable Yunsoo Cho and the Ambassador connected with Korean IT companies in Dallas such as Samsung Telecommunications America, and other event sponsors including, HF Controls Corporation, Hyundai Merchant Marine America, Inc., Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, and more.

The Ambassador's luncheon speech focused on enhancing Dallas-Korea economic relations and discussed the future of the U.S.- Korea relationship with emphasis on the importance of the U.S.-Korea (KORUS) Free Trade Agreement (FTA).

While the KORUS FTA appears to be picking up some momentum in Washington, D.C., the Ambassador encouraged the business community to support the FTA's passage by communicating its importance to members of Congress. He thanked the Chamber for its long history of supporting the FTA and most recently for the Chamber's letter of support written to the U.S. Trade Representative's Office.

The Ambassador noted that South Korea is currently DFW's second leading trading partner. In 2009, total trade between DFW and South Korea totaled approximately $5 billion U.S. dollars. Among the top items traded were consumer electronics.

His Excellency highlighted a few key areas for why an FTA with Korea is important:

Commercial importance - The expected impact of the KORUS FTA is significant to the DFW region and will serve to encourage imports and exports within these countries with eliminated tariffs. Over the last ten years, trade between DFW and South Korea grew from $1.45 billion to over $5 billion today; representing a 246% growth rate that experts expect would increase with an FTA in place.

Economic benefits to U.S. workers- The KORUS FTA will create new opportunities for many sectors of the U.S. economy. Currently, top trading commodities between the U.S. and the Republic of Korea include electric machinery, sound and television equipment, and vehicles.

Signaling that the U.S. is "open for business" - Among the challenges of the current international economy, the need for mutual cooperation, particularly economic cooperation, is even more clear. The Chamber supports this FTA to signal to the worldwide economy that our nation is "open for business" and that we will continue to support the U.S. economy through trade and international cooperation.

The Dallas Regional Chamber's International Business Council (IBC) has hosted trade missions to and incoming delegations from South Korea. The purpose of these initiatives is to foster area businesses' growth internationally and to promote the greater Dallas region as a location for international business development to overseas companies. For the past several years, the IBC's Asia Task Force has brought together experts on doing business in Korea to discuss business development issues and trends. Additionally, the IBC has long supported the development of Free Trade Agreements and has offered its specific support to the KORUS FTA as previously mentioned.

To view information on upcoming events related to Korea, visiting international dignitaries or to view the IBC's advocacy position statements, please visit www.dallaschamber.org/global.