Chile
Chile is one of the Latin American countries most actively pursuing bilateral trade agreements
Chile has signed more or less comprehensive free trade agreements with the US, Canada, the European Union, EFTA, South Korea, Japan, Central America and Mexico. In June 2005, it finalized a four-way deal with Pacific neighbours Brunei, New Zealand, and Singapore (P-4). In June 2006, it signed an FTA with Panama. In February 2010, it signed one with Guatemala.
Chile is the first Latin American country to have sealed an FTA on goods with China (2005) and since early 2007 has been working with Beijing on an expansion of the deal to cover services and investment. Further agreements in this regard were reached during President Bachelet’s visit to China in April 2008. The services deal came into force in August 2010.
Chile also has bilateral “economic complementation agreements“ with Bolivia, Peru, Venezuela, Argentina, Ecuador, Colombia and Mercosur, as well as a partial agreement with Cuba.
In 2008, Chile signed FTAs with Australia, Honduras, and Colombia while expanding its agreements with Peru and Cuba.
In March 2011, Chile’s FTA with Turkey came into force, and in April 2012, an FTA with Malaysia came into force. Negotiations with Thailand, Vietnam, India and Hong Kong are still ongoing.
last update: May 2012
“Multilateral trade agreements require much patience and involve complicated processes. If trade determines the survival of your country, you need to be more active in shaping bilateral or multilateral trade frames,” said Chile’s Deputy Foreign Minister Alberto Van Klaveren during a two-day visit to Seoul.
A Chilean high level delegation started negotiations with Malaysia to establish a Free Trade Agreement between the two countries, said Chile’s Palace of La Moneda (Government House) Thursday.
According to the President of the Chilean based Federation of Fruit Producers, Rodrigo Echeverría, the agreement with Japan to conform a free trade zone benefits only few Chilean fruit producers.
A group of Chilean 18 business leaders will visit Vietnam March 26 through April 1 in an economic mission organized by SOFOFA (Industrial Promotion Society), the Pacific Chilean Foundation, and Quiñenco SA.
Chilean President Michelle Bachelet’s Tuesday-Wednesday visit to Mexico will help strengthen the fastest-growing commercial relationship in Latin America — which expanded by nearly 2,000 percent between 1990 and 2006 — while giving concrete form to a strategic alliance that could also benefit neighbouring countries.
Chilean Foreign Minister Alejandro Foxley Rioseco said in Santiago on Monday that Chile and Japan would sign a free trade agreement (FTA) in March 2007, following the conclusion of bilateral negotiations on the issue last month.
Angola is not yet prepared to join the free trade zone in the year 2008, under the process of regional integration of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC), said Tuesday in Luanda the Planning minister, Ana Dias Lourenço.
Chilean President Michelle Bachelet concluded a new tour of Asia and the Pacific in search of markets.
Chile is considering signing a free trade agreement with Vietnam, Chilean President Michelle Bachelet said Friday.
Chile and Canada extended their existing free trade agreement on Wednesday, said a statement of the Chilean Foreign Ministry.
