This is because the rapidly emerging e-trade is considered a realistic alternative to improve Korea's export environment and remove trade barriers between nations. Moreover, Korea's take off toward becoming a Northeast Asian business hub, a Korean priority, will also depend on e-trade.

The speed of e-trade can significantly reduce transaction time and expenses through the utilisation of digital technology and networks and its effect on the economic order in the global village will be enormous.

The journal "Economist" of England is predicting that by 2020 e-trade will constitute over 30% of total global trade, while an e-commerce specialised firm "Forester Research" also is forecasting a sharp increase in e-trade volume to US$4 trillion in 2004 from US$800 million in 2000.

From that perspective, it is fortunate that Korea-led nation-to-nation e-trade is brisk. Building on the application of e-trade to substantial Korea-Japan export/import transaction, Korea-Germany export/import transaction test, and promotion of Korea-Bulgaria and Korea-EU e-trade linkages, opportunities for overseas market advance by domestic e-trade-related businesses will expand. Furthermore, Korea's role in the enactment of e-trade-related international systems and standards, global document standards, CA, security, legal framework will be substantial.

However, Korea still has a long way to go. Though Korea has realised nation-to-nation e-trade exchange with Japan, it is, in fact, merely a basic agreement made between Hyundai Motor and local Japanese firms on the methodology for a joint e-document system, establishment of e-document standards and mutual CA recognition. It is the same also with the Korea-Germany e-trade test, which is nothing but an agreement between Hyundai Motor and Bosch on three e-documents (invoice, packing list and shipping advice). In other words, there remain not a few legal and systematic procedures and tasks that have to be agreed on by respective governments. It is no exaggeration to say that Korea has made just the first step.

The reason why e-trade has such high potential, notwithstanding its infant stage, is because it is not only a new nation-to-nation paradigm but the transaction volume is projected to expand significantly. The Korea International Trade Association (KITA) forecast that the share of e-trade in the nation's total trade volume would reach 30.4% in the next five years from a 4.6% level in 2001. Economic benefits also are expected to be enormous: If US$100 million worth of goods are exported via e-trade, more than US$600,000 can be saved compared to traditional methods.

What matters in the future is if and how the nation is able to prepare itself and secure competitiveness in the era of e-trade, which is emerging as a new paradigm of the global economy and an engine for greater exports. In this context, the nation has to set up e-trade platforms that can handle such trade procedures as export/import approval, customs clearance, payment settlement and export/import logistics on a package basis.