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U.S., S. Korea trade talks begin
-U.S. seeks freer market for beef, oranges
SEOUL (AP)--The U.S. was expected to ask South Korea to lift a ban on American beef and oranges as the two countries Nov. 10 began their first trade talks since U.S. President George W. Bush's re-election.
Twenty U.S. officials brought to the table issues ranging from restrictions on agricultural imports to copyrights violations and car tariffs.
"Taken together, this broad array of trade irritances has created some skepticism about real opportunities the U.S. firms have in the Korean market, about the fairness and transparency of the regulatory environment they face," U.S. trade negotiator Andrew Quinn said before the talks began.
The quarterly negotiations, set to run through Nov. 11, are being closely watched for signs of a possible change in U.S. trade policy after Bush's re-election.
South Korea will ask the U.S. to ease restrictions on issuing non-immigration visas and to revise inspection policies on agricultural imports from South Korea, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said in a statement.
South Korea imposed a ban on American beef imports after the outbreak of mad cow disease in the U.S. in December 2003.
Until then, South Korea had been the third-largest destination for U.S. beef exports. In 2002, South Korea imported 213,000 tons of U.S. beef worth US$610 million, according to the U.S. Meat Export Federation.
In July, South Korea also banned the import of oranges and other fruits from the Santa Ana area of California's Orange County after U.S. officials discovered fruit flies there.
South Korea is the U.S.' seventh-biggest trading partner, taking up 3.3 percent of total U.S. exports.
The U.S. was South Korea's largest trading partner through 2003, when bilateral trade was worth US$59 billion.
But China outpaced the U.S. in 2004 as its trade with South Korea reached US$57 billion as of September, while South Korea-U.S. trade amounted to US$52 billion.
Date: 11/23/04
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