Report by the WTO Secretariat

Korea’s export-driven economy has rebounded from the global financial crisis that erupted around the time of its previous Trade Policy Review in 2008. This rebound is the result of the revival of trade world-wide and supportive macroeconomic and financial policies, including the largest fiscal stimulus among OECD countries, as well as accommodative monetary policy and a sharp depreciation of the exchange rate of the won during the latter part of 2008. The rebound was, by and large, achieved without resorting to restrictive trade measures; on the contrary, Korea has instead opened its market further to international trade through major bilateral free-trade agreements. The strong recovery in exports is such that Korea is now the world’s seventh largest exporter, up from twelfth in 2008.