Awwal 06, 1432 H/Feb 09, 2011, SPA -- US President Barack Obama will submit a free trade agreement with South Korea for congressional approval within weeks, and his administration will forge ahead toward finalizing deals with Colombia and Panama this year, dpa cited a top US trade official as saying Wednesday. US Trade Representative Ron Kirk told members of Congress the South Korea deal will benefit the US auto and agriculture industries and open the door for American firms to do business in South Korea's lucrative service sector. "This is going to be very good for all American manufacturers," Kirk told the House of Representatives' Ways and Means Committee. Kirk said the administration wants to see the trade deal approved this spring. The trade deal calls on both sides to reduce tariffs on each other's products and services by 95 per cent within five years. Obama is hoping the free trade agreement with the close US ally will help double American exports within five years as part of his pledge to revive the struggling US economy. Obama estimates the trade deal would create 70,000 new jobs in the United States and boost exports by 11 billion dollars annually. The Obama administration and Seoul reached the deal in December, after ironing out differences, namely over US access to South Korea's automotive sector. South Korea is the US's eighth largest annual trading partner with a total value of 68 billion dollars. The pact would mark the largest US trade deal since the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA, with Mexico and Canada.
