The president of South Korea, Lee Jae Myung, and the leader of Mongolia, Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh, met this Thursday and gave the green light to a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with the aim of consolidating the foundations for broader economic cooperation in trade and investment between both nations.
As detailed by the South Korean Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources, Lee, who is on an official visit to Mongolia, held several meetings with the Mongolian president in Ulaanbaatar, the setting where the CEPA was made public.
The two countries have successfully concluded negotiations after reaching understandings on the essential aspects of the agreement, including market access for goods and rules of origin.
Furthermore, the Ministry indicated that it is confident that the CEPA will contribute to accelerating collaboration in critical mineral supply chains, strengthen ties in the retail sector to facilitate the entry of South Korean consumer goods into Mongolia, and allow for the diversification of bilateral cooperation in industrial and investment fields.
In parallel, Mongolia will gradually eliminate tariffs applied to consumer goods from Seoul and, conversely, the South Korean government will remove levies of up to 5% on minerals imported from Mongolia, including copper and rare earths. As a consequence, both Asian countries will open their markets to more than 90% of bilateral imports.
This agreement becomes Mongolia's second free trade agreement with another state, after the one signed with Japan which entered into force in 2016. The South Korean Ministry specified that Seoul and Ulaanbaatar had been holding negotiations since December 2023.