Expanding Digital Trade Networks... Government "To Start Negotiations with EU Within This Year"

DEPA and EU Collaborate to Expand Digital Trade Initiatives

The government has decided to start negotiations within this year to conclude a Digital Partnership Agreement (DPA) with the European Union (EU).

On the 26th, an official from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy stated, "We are pushing to commence Korea-EU DPA negotiations within this year," adding, "After gathering stakeholder opinions through a public hearing on the 29th, we plan to begin negotiations in the second half of the year."

Digital trade refers to cross-border activities involving the trade of goods, services, and data through electronic means such as the internet, as well as related economic actors. Discussions on digital trade began at the World Trade Organization (WTO) level in the late 1990s, but due to differences in national positions, unified international norms remain insufficient. Recently, major countries including the United States, Japan, Australia, and Singapore have been actively pursuing the establishment of digital trade norms that reflect their domestic industries’ interests to secure leadership in the digital economy.

In response, Korea initiated the accession process to the world's first plurilateral digital trade agreement, the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement (DEPA), in October 2021, becoming the first member country on the 8th of this month. DEPA sets out norms and cooperation regarding institutional harmonization among member countries to create a stable data business environment and promotes the expansion of electronic trade. It has been concluded among three Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) member countries: Singapore, Chile, and New Zealand. DEPA is the second digital trade agreement following the Korea-Singapore Digital Partnership Agreement (KSDPA), which came into effect in January.

The government plans to improve Free Trade Agreement (FTA) norms based on the 'Korea-EU Digital Trade Principles' signed last November. The Digital Trade Principles consist of five sessions?facilitating digital trade, data governance, consumer trust, corporate trust, and responding to digital protectionism?with a total of 18 norms and cooperation elements.

Additionally, the government is promoting the conclusion of a digital trade agreement under the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF), a multilateral economic cooperation body led by the United States with participation from Korea and others. The Korea International Trade Association expects that once IPEF negotiations are concluded, digital trade norms established mainly by developed countries will expand to many regional countries, thereby contributing to creating business opportunities for Korean companies in the regional digital market.

An official from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said, "We are actively participating in global and regional digital trade cooperation bodies to expand strategic digital trade networks with major regions and hub countries such as the United States, China, and the EU," adding, "We plan to utilize the activation of DEPA within this year as a lever to expand the digital trade network."