The U.S. Senate Finance Committee has approved a bill seeking the ratification of the South Korea-U.S. free trade agreement.

The committee unanimously passed the bill during a full session on Tuesday that was presided over by committee chairman, Max Baucus.

The bill was passed by the House Ways and Means Committee last Wednesday and is expected to be approved in the Senate and House of Representatives this week.

As a result, efforts to ratify the South Korea-U.S. trade deal in U.S. Congress are likely to be concluded before President Lee Myung-bak and U.S. President Barack Obama hold a summit on Thursday.