South Korea and the U.S. announced Tuesday that their free-trade agreement will take effect March 15. The decision follows continued negotiations with the US over necessary preparations to be made, after the pact was approved by Congress in October and by the South Korean parliament in November.

The ministry said the government will take the necessary steps to "maximize benefits" that South Korean companies and the general public can have through the implementation of the pact.

U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk said the deal should support tens of thousands of jobs and help achieve the administration's goal of doubling exports by 2015.

"Entry into force of this agreement will open up Korea's $1 trillion economy for America's workers, businesses, farmers and ranchers while also strengthening our economic partnership with a key Asia-Pacific ally," Kirk said in a statement.

The South Korean parliament ratified the free-trade agreement Nov. 22, in what was seen as the last major hurdle in a negotiation process that took more than five years.

Analysts forecast that the pact will expand the $90 billion two-way trade relationship by 10 percent within five years. The deal eliminates most tariffs on goods between South Korea and the US.

Trade accounts for more than half of South Korea's economic output, and South Korean leaders have used free-trade deals in part to force broader liberalization of the country's economy, which has relied heavily on protectionist measures to fuel its rapid development of industries from the 1960s onward.

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