South Korea and the United Kingdom will launch the fifth round of negotiations this week to upgrade their bilateral free trade agreement(FTA).

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced that the talks will take place from Monday to Friday in Seoul, with approximately 60 officials from both countries participating.

Kwon Hye-jin, director general for FTA negotiations at the ministry, expressed hope that an enhanced agreement will help the two countries jointly tackle global supply chain risks and deepen cooperation in key areas of trade and investment. 

During this latest round of talks, the two sides aim to narrow differences and make progress across 16 sectors, including services, investment, digital trade, rules of origin, and government procurement.

The existing FTA, signed in 2019, took effect in January 2021 following the UK's exit from the European Union. 

South Korea and the UK have been engaged in formal negotiations to upgrade the deal since 2023.