GEN Trade wars..The important Things in Life . First bananas, now Garlic

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Hold the garlic, pass the coal

SEOUL - Chang Che-shik, South Korean Minister of Commerce, Industry and Energy, said on Friday importing coal from China is being considered as one of the options to ease trade tension surrounding imports of Chinese garlic. Seoul is looking increasingly contrite after Beijing accused it of reneging on a deal to buy 32,000 tons of the stuff.

The ministry even considered sending Chinese garlic to North Korea, but the North refused to accept the shipments. Chang touched on the issue during a meeting of the Association of Foreign Trading Agents of Korea.

Chang said the ministry considered reselling the excess garlic from last year's import to Southeast Asia, but it ran into Chinese objections. He stressed the importance of trade relations with China for stability in Northeast Asia as well as for "our" livelihood. "We cannot afford to lose the Chinese market and we have to buy Chinese goods, given the prices are the same," Chang said.

He said he would visit China to explore the possibility of increasing coal imports from there by expanding coal-fired thermal power plants in the country, adding the country has enough know-how to control power plant emissions.

The Korean government had first balked at China's proposals to buy an additional 10,000 tons of garlic, but said that bilateral trade relations were too important to endanger. Indeed, South Korea and China will hold a trade ministers' meeting in Beijing on Saturday to settle the row. South Korea's Trade Minister Hwang Doo-yun will meet with Shi Guang Sheng, China's Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation Minister.

The Korean government has already agreed that it will import an additional 10,000 tons of garlic from China by June, and the two sides are expected to discuss how the garlic is to be imported, as well as establish a price.

The "garlic dispute" erupted last week when China warned it might take punitive measures against Korean petrochemical products and cellular phones if Korea did not move to purchase its products. China claims that Korea is trying to renege on a deal agreed upon last year to buy the thousands of tons of garlic.

On the other hand, observers say that even if a price is agreed upon, it might take time to find a buyer for the garlic since the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, cell phone exporters and petrochemical companies have all expressed reservations about footing the estimated 10 billion won (US$7.7 million) price tab to prevent them facing retaliatory measures.

http://www.atimes.com/koreas/CD21Dg02.html

-- Anonymous, April 23, 2001

Answers

LOL!! I shouldn't joke about this.. Garlic is indeed an essential prep for medicinal purposes. Cures that scratchy throat after the chemtrail sprayer passes over..

-- Anonymous, April 23, 2001

My mother was one of the early health food nuts and made me take garlic capsules in the morning. That is, until I absolutely refused to take any more--in those days there was no such things as odorless garlic capsules and my breath was akin to tear-gas. The kids at school eventually forgave me.

-- Anonymous, April 23, 2001

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