Prensa Latina | 22 de noviembre de 2011

Mexico, CentAm to sign single FTA

by Raquel Maria Garcia Alvarez

San Salvador, Nov 22 (Prensa Latina) — Mexico and the five countries in Central America (Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua) are expected this Tuesday to sign a Single Free Trade Agreement on Nov. 22, the Ministry of Economy announced here.

The agreement provides a legal framework to carry out trade in goods and services between the parties, as well as establish investment in the region, said the source.

The signing ceremony will be attended by Foreign Ministers Patricia Espionza (Mexico) and Hugo Martinez (El Salvador), as well as the ministers of Economy of Mexico and of the Central American countries.

Espinoza will arrive in El Salvador on Tuesday morning along with Minister of Economy Bruno Ferrari, according to Counselor of Economic and Press Affairs of the Mexican Embassy, Bernardo Mendez.

Deputy ministers of Economy and Foreign trade of Central America and Under Secretary of Foreign Trade of Mexico Francisco Rosenzweig completed the negotiations for the agreement in San Salvador on October 19-20.

Issues discussed in the talks included the rules of access and origin in order to facilitate Central American exports to Mexico and update the legal framework of trade relations between the parties, said the Ministry of Economy then.

Mendez said on Monday that currently Mexico has bilateral agreements with Costa Rica, Nicaragua and the so-called Northern Triangle made up of El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras.