The share of South Korean goods in China's import market reached nearly 10 percent this year, retaining the status as the market leader for a second year, a local think tank said Sunday.

In the first nine months of this year, China imported US$140.7 billion worth of South Korean products, or 9.6 percent of its total imports worth $1.47 trillion, according to the Institute for International Trade.

South Korea retained its status as the top goods exporter to China for the second consecutive year, with Seoul overtaking Japan for the first time.

Japan's share of the Chinese import market came to 8.3 percent in the January-September period, it said.

The think tank predicted South Korea's market share to further increase over the coming years once a bilateral free trade agreement takes effect.

Last Monday, South Korea and China declared the effective conclusion of a free trade deal that calls for the two nations to eliminate their import tariffs on more than 90 percent of all products traded between them within 20 years after the deal takes effect.

South Korea became the sole country to sign a free trade deal with China among the world's top five exporters to Beijing -- South Korea, Japan, the United States, Taiwan and Germany. (Yonhap)