S. Korean finance minister meets with London mayor

South Korea's finance minister on Monday agreed with the City of London's mayor to work closely for bilateral cooperation in trade in the aftermath of the British vote to exit the European Union, or Brexit, the finance ministry here said.

   In a Seoul meeting with Jeffery Mountevans, the Lord Mayor of the City of London, Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho said the two countries have to join tight hands for close coordination to prevent any contraction in trade and investment in each nation when Britain launches negotiations in earnest to leave the EU, according to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance.

   The Seoul government earlier said it will seek a separate bilateral trade deal with London after the Britain-EU breakup as Asia's fourth-largest economy concluded a free trade agreement with the EU in 2014.

   Lord Mountevans, who represents the business and financial sectors in the British capital, has been on a five-day visit to South Korea to celebrate the launch of a British fintech firm's local unit, Xntree Korea, slated for Tuesday.

   The two leaders shared the view that the Brexit impact on the global financial market will weigh heavily on the market in the longer term in accordance with the development of the scheduled Britain-EU negotiations.

   "South Korea expects that new Prime Minister Theresa May's leadership will help ease uncertainties in the world financial market," said Yoo.

   The country's exports to Britain totaled US$7.39 billion last year, taking up just 1.4 percent of the country's total outbound shipments. (Yonhap)