The seventh Joint Committee on the China–South Korea Free Trade Agreement met in Beijing on June 25. Officials reviewed FTA implementation, noting it has aided bilateral supply‑chain integration and supported economic growth; since the agreement entered into force on Dec. 20, 2015, the parties have carried out 12 rounds of tariff reductions that helped expand trade. They are advancing second‑phase negotiations to further liberalize and facilitate services trade and investment.

Iran’s deputy foreign minister said in a social media post on the 26th that unclear arrangements, parallel routes or decisions that ignore Iran’s position as a littoral state cannot guarantee safe navigation through the Strait of Hormuz. He said any credible framework must be coordinated with Iran and comply with Article 5 of the Iran‑US memorandum of understanding; otherwise the designated parallel routes will be suspended.

Zhongfu Shenying Carbon Fiber Co. said its wholly owned unit, Zhongfu Shenying Carbon Fiber Lianyungang Co., has begun trial production on some lines of its planned 30,000 tpa high-performance carbon-fiber project. The project, with planned investment of CNY5.96 bln, started construction in June 2023 and has a designed capacity of 30,000 tpa. The first-phase three production lines have entered trial runs. Using industry benchmark SYT49 (T700)-12K, a single line’s theoretical annual capacity is 3,000 t, so the three lines total 9,000 tpa theoretical capacity.