S Korea, China, Japan will hold working-level meetings

South Korea, China and Japan will hold their second round of working-level meetings later this month with the aim of launching free trade talks within this year, Seoul's trade ministry said Thursday. In June this year, the three nations held a similar meeting to discuss details and preparation for the launch of the trilateral free trade talks, according to South Korea's (Yonhap) News Agency. The ministry said the date for the upcoming meeting has not been decided yet, but the talks will be held in Beijing. South Korea and China are currently in talks over their bilateral free trade agreement. Free trade talks between Seoul and Tokyo have been stalled since late 2004, mainly because of Japan's reluctance to lower tariffs on agricultural goods. In May this year, the three nations signed a three-way accord aimed at promoting corporate direct investment.