Talks in Dhaka to cover 11 areas including product concessions, services and rules of origin

Park Geun-o, South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy trade agreement policy director and chief negotiator, poses for a photo with Ayesha Akther, director of the Foreign Trade Agreement Division at Bangladesh's Ministry of Commerce and chief negotiator for the Bangladeshi side, at the third round of South Korea-Bangladesh Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement negotiations at Lotte Hotel in Seoul's Sogong-dong on April 12. [Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy]
Park Geun-o, South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy trade agreement policy director and chief negotiator, poses for a photo with Ayesha Akther, director of the Foreign Trade Agreement Division at Bangladesh's Ministry of Commerce and chief negotiator for the Bangladeshi side, at the third round of South Korea-Bangladesh Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement negotiations at Lotte Hotel in Seoul's Sogong-dong on April 12. [Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy]

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said the fourth round of official negotiations toward a South Korea-Bangladesh Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement will be held in Dhaka, Bangladesh, from Monday through Friday.

The talks will bring together delegations of about 60 officials from both sides, led by Park Geun-o, the ministry's trade agreement policy director, and Ayesha Akther, director of the Foreign Trade Agreement Division at Bangladesh's Ministry of Commerce.

A CEPA is a trade agreement that offers greater flexibility than a conventional free trade agreement, broadening the scope of cooperation across a wide range of areas. It covers not only the liberalization of trade in goods and services but also investment and broader economic relations.

South Korea and Bangladesh declared the launch of negotiations in November 2024 and have exchanged positions over three rounds of talks. The two sides plan to hold in-depth discussions across 11 areas — including product concessions, services and rules of origin — to lay the groundwork for concluding an agreement.

Bangladesh, with a population of 170 million, ranks eighth in the world by population and has posted average annual economic growth of 6.6 percent over the past three years, making it one of the fastest-growing markets in South Asia.

The government expects opportunities for South Korean companies to expand into Bangladesh to grow, as the Bangladeshi government is actively pursuing infrastructure development in public sectors including power, roads and aviation.

"Bangladesh is a key South Asian market with annual growth of more than 6 percent, and concluding a CEPA is expected to expand Korean companies' access to that market," Park said. "We will engage actively in the negotiations to ensure they advance as quickly as possible."


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