S.Korea, Vietnam initial free trade agreement

South Korea and Vietnam have initialed their long-sought bilateral free trade agreement (FTA).

Seoul's trade ministry said on Sunday that the two countries initialed the FTA in Seoul, which will help boost bilateral economic ties by removing tariffs and other trade barriers.

Following the initialing, South Korea will seek to formally sign the accord within the first half of this year and acquire parliamentary approval as soon as possible. The ministry aims to make the agreement take effect by year-end.