The signing of the Mercosur-EU agreement is a decisive step towards creating the world's largest free trade area after more than a quarter of a century of negotiations and blockages, which will allow both parties to diversify alliances in the face of the protectionist drift of the United States. The president of Panama, José Raúl Mulino, will travel on Friday to Paraguay to participate the next day in the signing of the free trade agreement between the European Union (EU) and the Southern Common Market (Mercosur), bloc of which the Central American country is an Associated State. The agreement will eliminate tariffs for 91% of EU exports to Mercosur and for 92% of South American sales to Europe, which translates into an estimated annual saving of 4,000 million euros for European companies. "Tomorrow (Friday) I travel to Paraguay for the Mercosur-EU meeting where the free trade agreement will be signed (...) It is my duty to attend Paraguay and accompany this important and awaited event, an agreement that has been delayed for 25 years," said the head of state this Thursday during his weekly press conference. According to Mulino, the commercial convention between the two blocks is "a tremendous advance" for all members of Mercosur and the EU, since the entry of products will generate "greater benefits" for both parties. In turn, the pact will allow Mercosur to consolidate its position as the "breadbasket of the world" for Europe, gaining preferential access to products such as beef, soy, honey and biofuels, although under a quota system that seeks to limit the impact on local European producers. The new commercial space will integrate about 800 million consumers and will represent a joint gross domestic product (GDP) of approximately 22 trillion dollars, according to data from the European Commission.
Mercosur-EU Agreement Signed: Creating the World's Largest Free Trade Area
Panama's President José Raúl Mulino traveled to Paraguay to take part in the historic signing of the free trade agreement between the European Union and Mercosur. After 25 years of negotiations, a breakthrough has been achieved that will create the world's largest free trade area, covering 800 million consumers and combining an economy of $22 trillion. The agreement provides for the elimination of tariffs for 91-92% of exports, which will bring an annual saving of 4 billion euros for European companies.
