Today's Date: Monday, July 09, 2012

For Coverage: July 05 - 09, 2012

1. BILATERAL/MULTILATERAL ISSUES

Second Round of Korea-China FTA Talks [English, KT]

http://view.koreaherald.com/kh/view.php?ud=20120706000739&cpv=0

and http://view.koreaherald.com/kh/view.php?ud=20120703001400&cpv=0

Korea and China opened their second round of FTA talks on July 3 in Jeju Island, Korea. During the three day talks, the two sides reportedly did not reach agreement on sensitive and ultra sensitive items, which both sides had earlier agreed would be negotiated first. The next round of talks are to take place in August in China.

Korea and Vietnam to announce FTA talks [English, KT]

http://www.investkorea.org/InvestKoreaWar/work/ik/eng/nr/nr_01_read.jsp?no=608300001&l_unit=90202&bno=207030006&page=1&sort_num=5602

Korea and Vietnam are expected to announce the start of FTA talks when Korean Trade Minister Bark visits Hanoi on July 13. Rice, tropical fruits and fisheries are expected to be the most contentious issues.

2. LIVESTOCK ISSUES

Korean Hanwoo Farmers under Pressure [English, KT]

http://view.koreaherald.com/kh/view.php?ud=20120703000824&cpv=0

Korean beef farmers are feeling the pressures of lower prices due to oversupply, high consumer prices, and overall economic uncertainty. Farmers are concened about the rising price of feed. One producer estimates the cost of feed per animal at $86/month.

3. MARKETING ISSUES

Shinsegae Opens ‘Premium Grocery Store’, SSG Food Market, in Seoul [Korean, OSY]

http://www.hankyung.com/news/app/newsview.php?aid=2012070548221

Summary: Shinsegae Department Store opened its first “SSG Food Market” store in Chungdam-dong, Seoul on July 6. SSG Food Market is a premium grocery store chain that Shinsegae Department Store has developed over the last two years. According to Shinsegae, SSG Food Market will offer freshest and best quality products sourced from the world. The Chungdam store is in a two story building with 4,960 sq. meter of space.

Smoothie King Korea Acquires Smoothie King USA [Korean, OSY]

http://sports.chosun.com/news/utype.htm?id=201207090100064180005256&ServiceDate=20120709

Summary: Smoothie King Korea announced on July 9 that it had acquired Smoothie King USA. The purchase cost was $50 million. Smoothie King USA has over 700 outlets around the world, including 140 in Korea. Korean outlets, which opened since 2003, have been top selling outlets of the Smoothie King international.

Whiskey Sales Down 10% in the First Half [Korean, OSY]

http://www.yonhapnews.co.kr/economy/2012/07/08/0302000000AKR20120708074100003.HTML

Summary: Total amount of whiskies sold in Korea during the first half this year amounted to 1.06 million cases (9 liter per case), down 10.1% from the same period last year. Industry analysts reported that the decline in sales was mainly due to extended economic concerns among the consumers as well as reduced corporate spending in saloons.

4. OTHER MISCELLANEOUS ISSUES

Korea to Allow Catching Whales for “Scientific Research Purpose” … Australia and New Zealand Strongly Oppose [Korean, OSY]

http://news.dongascience.com/PHP/NewsView.php?kisaid=20120706100000000149&classcode=01

Summary: Korean government reported to International Whaling Committee that it would allow its fishing industry to catch whales for “scientific research purpose”. Korea has been banning whaling since 1986. After the announcement, international NGOs and several countries opposing whaling have made a strong criticism against the ROKG plan.

The information in this report was compiled by the Agricultural Trade Office (ATO) at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, South Korea. The press summaries contained herein do NOT reflect USDA, the U.S. Embassy, or other U.S. government agency official policy or view point. U.S. food exporters can learn more about market opportunities in South Korea by reviewing ATO Seoul’s Exporter Guide and other reports available at www.fas.usda.gov by clicking on “attaché reports”.

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