President Lee Jae Myung has promised South Korean farmers and fishers compensation and described their industries vital to national security, a day after his government estimated what joining the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) would cost them.

However, this framing could make it harder for Seoul to offer the concessions that existing member states are likely to demand.

The preliminary assessment, released on Monday, projects that membership would leave the economy about 0.38% larger after 10 years while costing agriculture, forestry and fisheries about $627.8 million (852 billion won) in output a year. The Ministry of