Morocco and South Korea agreed Wednesday to launch negotiations for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), Korean media reported, citing South Korea’s Ministry of Trade.
Moroccan Secretary of State for Foreign Trade Omar Hejira held a virtual meeting on May 6 with South Korean Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo to discuss expanding trade and investment ties and supporting the expansion of Korean companies in Morocco’s electric vehicle and battery sectors.
According to Korean outlet Go Seoul, one of the meeting’s main outcomes was an agreement to advance industrial cooperation and launch formal CEPA talks between the two countries in due course.
According to the Moroccan Investment and Export Development Agency, Morocco’s strategic location and free trade network covering more than 50 countries, including the EU and the United States, strengthen its position as an industrial and export platform.
The Korean minister proposed combining Morocco’s growth potential with South Korea’s advanced industrial capabilities to deepen trade and industrial cooperation, Go Seoul reported.
CEPAs generally cover trade in goods and services, investment, and industrial cooperation, aiming to improve market access and reduce tariffs.
As Morocco currently has no active free trade or economic partnership agreement with East Asian countries, a potential Morocco South Korea CEPA could strengthen supply chains linking Morocco’s phosphate and critical mineral reserves with South Korea’s advanced manufacturing sector, according to Korean media reports.
Both sides stressed the agreement’s potential to encourage trade and investment and agreed to continue consultations to begin negotiations as early as possible, News1 Korea reported.
Bilateral trade between the two countries stood at roughly $550 million in 2024, according to South Korean foreign ministry data, with trade flows and investments increasingly concentrated around industrial equipment, automotive manufacturing and critical minerals
These include Hyundai Rotem’s $1.53 billion contract with Morocco’s national railway operator, secured last year to supply electric trains for the kingdom’s expanding rail network ahead of the 2030 FIFA World Cup. Deliveries are expected to begin in 2027 and continue through 2032, with part of the production planned locally in Morocco.
The officials also discussed LG Energy Solution’s lithium smelter investment project in Morocco, which is expected to support the development of a domestic battery industry value chain.
“The Korea Morocco CEPA will expand the horizons of trade cooperation to Africa, contributing to the strategic diversification of trade and investment markets for our companies,” Yeo said, according to Go Seoul.
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