The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) says that the U.S. government is touting a free trade agreement between South Korea and the U.S. as an example of a successful FTA.

The U.S. business newspaper quoted officials at the White House as saying that the year-old Korea-US FTA shows such pacts will help the U.S. economy without hurting its vulnerable sectors, such as the auto industry.

The report said that both Seoul and Washington saw their exports of items affected by the deal increase over the past year.

However, the daily also noted that there are complaints from some U.S. industries arguing the deal only boosted the competitiveness of South Korean companies in the U.S. market.