Wine Industry Welcomes South Korea Trade Deal

Wine Industry Welcomes South Korea Trade Deal

New Zealand Winegrowers has warmly welcomed the announcement of the conclusion of the free trade agreement between New Zealand and the Republic of Korea.

Commenting on the news, NZ Winegrowers CEO Philip Gregan said ‘The negotiators have achieved a great outcome for the wine industry. Tariff free access into South Korea at the time the agreement comes into force represents a significant boost to our export ambitions in one of the key Asian markets.’

‘Until this deal our competitive position in South Korea has been really handicapped because a number of our competitors have enjoyed tariff free access into the market. We saw the negotiations with South Korea as the opportunity to correct this imbalance. Duty free access under the agreement will level the playing field and will be a sign that the Korean market is open for business for New Zealand wine exporters’.

‘We would like to congratulate the government and the negotiating team for achieving this very positive outcome for New Zealand wine. It will provide a very solid base for our future growth in South Korea’ said Mr Gregan.

Wine exports to South Korea are currently valued $2 million for the June year end 2014. Total wine exports are more than $1.3 billion.

-ENDS-

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