Mercosur and EFTA conclude negotiations regarding a Free Trade Agreement.
CIRCULAR
International Trade and Customs Department report: Mercosur and EFTA conclude negotiations regarding a Free Trade Agreement.
Dear Sir or Madam,
On August 23rd, the negotiations of the Free Trade Agreement between Mercosur and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) -the intergovernmental organization of Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein- concluded in Buenos Aires after two years and ten rounds. The EFTA involves 14 million consumers with one of the highest purchase powers of the world and a GDP of USD 1,200 billion, as well as a relevant role in international trade.
The agreement includes tariffs and regulatory subjects such as trade in goods, trade in services, investment, government procurement, trade facilitation, technical barriers to trade, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, sustainable development, competition, trade remedies and intellectual property. It establishes that with the entry into force of the agreement, the EFTA will abolish all custom duties on imports of industrial products (including fish and other marine products) originating in Mercosur and Mercosur will gradually eliminate or reduce customs duties on the large majority of industrial products (including fish and other marine products) originating in the EFTA over a period of up to 15 years.
It should be noted that, alongside with the previous agreement with the European Union, the Mercosur will have privileged access to almost the entire European market which entails a relevant opportunity for the region’s economic development.
The text or the agreement (that still needs to be formally written and approved by the countries involved) can be found in the following link: https://www.efta.int/sites/default/files/documents/legal-texts/free-trade-relations/mercosur/19-08-24-EFTA-Mercosur-Chapter-Description-of-FTA.pdf
Should you require any further information on this matter, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Kind regards,
Augusto Vechio