Chile, Canada expand free trade pact
Associated Press 07.17.07
Chile, Canada Expand Free Trade Pact
SANTIAGO, Chile — Canada and Chile marked the 10th anniversary of their free trade agreement Tuesday, vowing to expand the accord to financial services and other areas.
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, on a tour of South American and the Caribbean, signed a framework agreement with President Michelle Bachelet that will give Chilean banks and brokerages the same access to Canada as U.S. firms.
The deal will also serve as the groundwork for expanding ties with Chile in areas including energy, agriculture and the environment, Harper said.
Since the two nations signed the trade pact in 1997, bilateral commerce has expanded 215 percent, with Canada becoming the top source of foreign investment in Chile.
Chile’s exports to Canada were nearly $1.3 billion last year. It imported $436 million worth of Canadian goods.
Harper arrived in Chile from Colombia, where he met with President Alvaro Uribe and the two announced the start of trilateral free trade talks with Peru. He continues on to Barbados and Haiti before returning to Ottawa.
