[News Terms] 'Mercosur' Hoping to Expand Trade with Korea

'Mercosur (MERCOSUR)' refers to the South American Common Market established in 1991 by four South American countries: Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay.

Since 1999, it has waived tariffs on 90% of items traded among member countries, aiming to become an integrated system similar to the European Union (EU), beyond a simple economic bloc. It is an abbreviation of the Spanish term 'Mercado Com?n del Sur,' and its secretariat is located in Montevideo, Uruguay.

Leaders of each country posing for a commemorative photo at the MERCOSUR summit held on the 4th (local time) in Puerto Iguazu, Argentina. From the left: Luis Arce, President of Bolivia; Santiago Pe?a, President-elect of Paraguay; Mario Abdo Benitez, President of Paraguay; Alberto Fernandez, President of Argentina; Luis Ignacio Lula da Silva, President of Brazil; Luis Lacalle Pou, President of Uruguay.
[Photo by AFP/Yonhap News, Puerto Iguazu (Argentina)]

The four founding members are full members, while Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Guyana, and Suriname are associate members. Venezuela joined in 2012 but had its membership suspended in 2016, and Bolivia is awaiting ratification by member countries' parliaments to become a full member. The combined Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Mercosur member countries is $3.4 trillion, with a population of 290 million, accounting for 45% of the total in Latin America.

Lu?s In?cio Lula da Silva, President of Brazil, which was appointed as the new Mercosur chair country, stated on the 4th (local time), "We hope for progress in trade negotiations between Mercosur and Korea." On the day of the first face-to-face summit meeting since 2019, President Lula spoke at the Mercosur summit held in Puerto Iguaz?, Argentina, saying, "Trade barriers only harm growing countries."

He mentioned the need to strengthen trade with countries including Korea, Canada, and Singapore. He also expressed support for Bolivia's accession and emphasized the necessity of introducing a common South American currency.

Korea has continuously discussed ways to strengthen cooperation with Mercosur, including last year when Prime Minister Han Duck-soo visited Uruguay, the then chair country, and met with President Luis Lacalle Pou to discuss resuming trade agreement (TA) negotiations.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.