China-Japan-Korea

The governments of China, South Korea and Japan are expected to commence negotiations on an eventual trilateral free trade agreement between the three countries during 2012 by first concluding bilateral agreements.

In December 2011, the three countries held a final joint study meeting on the feasibility of an FTA among them.

In January 2012, the South Korean and Chinese presidents announced that they would move towards negotiating a bilateral agreement between the two countries. In March 2012, the three countries concluded an investment agreement among themselves which is viewed as a step towards a more comprehensive FTA. In May 2012, China and Korea held their first round of negotiations towards an FTA in Beijing.

Negotiations on a Japan-Korea bilateral FTA, which stalled in 2004, despite several attempts to revive them, have to contend with unresolved tensions stemming from the Japanese occupation of Korea in the first half of the 20th century and Japanese resistance to lowering tariffs on agricultural imports. Any eventual FTA between China, South Korea and Japan needs to be seen in the context of ongoing economic and political rivalry between China and the USA, as Washington pursues plans to create a new regional free trade and investment agreement by joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).

last update: May 2012
Photo: KOREA.NET - Official page of the Republic of Korea / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0


The Diplomat | 28-Jan-2022
Will RCEP be able to accelerate the negotiation process for the China-Japan-South Korea free trade agreement?
Yonhap | 30-Nov-2020
China’s renewed pursuit of a free trade agreement with South Korea and Japan appears aimed at undercutting US influence and shaping regional economic cooperation on terms favorable to it.
Yonhap | 3-Aug-2020
Corea del Sur y China han celebrado, este lunes, una reunión para actualizar y ampliar el alcance de su tratado de libre comercio (TLC) que entró en vigor aproximadamente hace cinco años.
Andina | 29-May-2020
China, Japón y la República de Corea están trabajando estrechamente para avanzar en el desarrollo de su tratado de libre comercio (TLC), informó hoy jueves el primer ministro chino, Li Keqiang.
Le Quotidien du Peuple | 29-May-2020
La Chine, le Japon et la République de Corée travaillent en étroite collaboration pour faire avancer l’établissement de leur accord de libre-échange, a déclaré le Premier ministre chinois.
East Asia Forum | 11-Feb-2020
The fact that China, Japan and South Korea (CJK) engaged in an agreed-upon trilateral summit framework, and bilateral dialogues on the sidelines, was no small achievement given heightened tensions between the three countries.