South Korea and China have vowed to make joint efforts to overcome economic jitters sparked by the new coronavirus pandemic.

The two countries held a virtual meeting on Monday to discuss ways to better utilize their free trade agreement and boost bilateral trade amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Seoul and Beijing implemented their FTA in December 2015, after which bilateral trade advanced 18.2 percent by 2018.

According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, they agreed to establish a new committee focused on the e-commerce industry to overcome business disruptions caused by the global spread of COVID-19, and speed up negotiations to lift more barriers in the service and investment sectors.

The two countries said they would also maintain the "fast-track" entry system to minimize travel restrictions for business officials.

Meanwhile, Seoul called on China to protect the intellectual rights of its exporters.

Ministry data shows trade with China reached 243.4 billion dollars in 2019, slightly down from the 268.6 billion dollars posted the previous year amid global economic uncertainties.

Outbound shipments to China increased for the second consecutive month in July, rising 2.5 percent on-year, on the back of demand for petrochemical products and steel goods as Chinese factories gradually resumed operations.

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