The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry said Monday its issuance of certificates of origin (C/O) has sharply risen for local export items bound for China.

A total of 31,488 certificates of origin were issued by the end of May for tariff cuts under a free trade agreement with China, according to the chamber.


A C/O is a key shipping document needed for preferential tariffs under an FTA. South Korea and China’s bilateral FTA went into effect on Dec. 20 last year.

The Seoul-based KCCI, which has regional chambers across the nation, is authorized to issue FTA C/O, along with the Korea Customs Service.

"The number of the KCCI's issuance of South Korea-China FTA C/O came to 7,835 in May, close to double from 4,034 in January," the chamber said. "It means some 250 certificates a day were issued nationwide on average last month."

It shows that a growing number of South Korean exporters are benefiting from lower or no tariffs under the FTA, it added.

By goods, the issuance of C/O for petrochemical, machinery, consumer, steel, electronics and vehicle-related products has been on a steady rise, said the KCCI.

But there was no C/O issued for the shipbuilding industry, it added.

The KCCI expects the number of certificates for exports to China to jump to 90,000 by the end of this year.

"Especially, small-and middle-sized companies have gained more price competitiveness thanks to the tariff benefits from the FTA with China," Lee Dong-geun, vice chairman of the KCCI, said. (Yonhap)