S. Korea, Singapore to implement digital partnership pact this weekend

All News 11:00 January 13, 2023

SEOUL, Jan. 13 (Yonhap) -- South Korea and Singapore plan to officially kick off their bilateral digital partnership pact this weekend in a move to boost digital trade and industry cooperation, Seoul's trade ministry said Friday.

The Digital Partnership Agreement (DPA) is set to be implemented Saturday, about two months after the two countries signed the digital trade agreement, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

The two countries launched negotiations for the pact in June 2020. It is South Korea's first digital trade agreement.

The DPA is meant to set up rules for faster and safer digital transactions, facilitate trade in the digital realm, including digital content and various online services, and better protect consumers over the course of online trade, according to the ministry.

The pact is also expected to promote South Korea's exports to the broader Association of Southeast Asian Nations via online platforms, as Singapore has such leading e-commerce platforms as Lazada and Shopee.

Singapore is South Korea's 11th-largest trading partner and has a similar digitization level, according to the ministry.