S. Korea grants China market status
(Reuters)
Updated: 2005-11-16 21:40

President Roh Moo-hyun said on Wednesday that South Korea had granted Beijing market economy status, a landmark move that will give China greater protection from anti-dumping duties on exports.

Hu was on a two-day state visit to South Korea. [AP]

Roh was speaking during Hu's two-day state visit to Seoul, the first by a Chinese president since former President Jiang Zemin made a state visit in 1995.

"On the occasion of President Hu's visit, I officially conveyed our government's decision to recognize China's position as a market economy status. Through this, I expect South Korea-China relations to develop a step higher," Roh told a joint news conference with Hu.

South Korea's decision to open up to China now was another piece of evidence of the warm ties between the two countries, enemies up until the early 1990s after China fought on the side of the North in the 1950-53 Korean War.

Under the terms of China's 2001 accession to the World Trade Organization, members of the trade body can treat China as a "non-market economy" until 2016.

China became South Korea's largest trading partner last year, with two-way trade totalling $79.35 billion, up 39.2 percent from the year before, according to South Korean government figures.