Anchor: The European Union(EU) and the South American trade bloc Mercosur have concluded a free trade agreement(FTA) after two decades of negotiations. Many hope the deal will increase momentum for South Korea's own FTA with Mercosur, which Seoul hopes to finalize by next year.
Celina Yoon has more.

Report: The European Union(EU) and South America's Mercosur trade bloc that includes Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay concluded two decades of free trade negotiations on Friday. 

The deal produced a free trade agreement(FTA) that spawns a huge market with some 800-million consumers. 

For Mercosur, the deal eliminates tariffs across the board on exports to the EU, and opens up the agricultural goods market to South American beef, poultry, sugar and ethanol producers, among others.

The EU will also enjoy reduced tariffs on exports to Mercosur states and will improve access to markets there with traditionally high trade barriers. 

Moreover, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said on Saturday that he envisions the FTA having a “domino effect” that increases momentum for trade deals with other countries interested in Brazil, the world’s ninth-largest economy.

The EU-Mercosur deal, and Bolsonaro's comments, are expected to accelerate ongoing trade talks between South Korea and the South American bloc, which officials hope to wrap up by next year.

Such expectations are bolstered by comments made in May by South Korea's Deputy Minister for Trade Negotiations Yeo Han-koo, which described the Mercosur bloc as an "attractive market with huge potential" for key Korean exports such as automobiles and information technology.

The Mercosur bloc includes some 290-million people, 70 percent of South America's total population and 80 percent of the region's GDP.

The bloc's trade with South Korea, however, stood at ten-point-two-billion U.S. dollars last year, a sharp decline from the 18-point-two-billion dollars marked in 2011. Trade officials hope the proposed FTA will improve those numbers.
Celina Yoon, KBS World Radio News.