Paraguay
Paraguay Senate Committee Endorsed Mercosur-EFTA Trade Agreement
The bill received a favorable report unanimously from those present in the Foreign Relations and International Affairs Committee. During the review, Minister Marco Riquelme highlighted the agreement's potential for exports and investment.
The Foreign Relations and International Affairs Committee of the Paraguay Senate unanimously approved the bill ratifying the free trade agreement between Mercosur and the European Free Trade Association states, according to La Nación Paraguay.
The agreement establishes a free trade area between the South American bloc and EFTA, made up of Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein, in line with the provisions of the World Trade Organization.
According to La Nación Paraguay, the initiative aims to facilitate the exchange of goods and services, promote investment and strengthen economic ties between the parties. It also includes commitments to reduce and eliminate tariffs on originating goods, as well as provisions on national treatment, quantitative restrictions, import licenses and other trade administration instruments.
The text also provides for tariff preferences for certain agricultural products, specific quotas for sensitive products and mechanisms aimed at giving economic operators greater predictability and legal certainty.
During the meeting, Minister of Industry and Commerce Marco Riquelme said the agreement opens the possibility of trading tariff-free and could benefit both the export of Paraguayan products and the arrival of investment from those countries.
The committee, chaired by Senator Antonio Barrios, also analyzed the interest of EFTA countries in deepening their economic relationship with Paraguay. According to La Nación Paraguay, Senator Walter Kobylanski focused on the Norwegian market, while Eduardo Nakayama highlighted the relevance of the agreement’s annexes to expand trade commitments and facilitate access to high-purchasing-power markets. Gustavo Leite proposed that the quotas provided for be distributed equitably among the bloc’s countries, and Lilian Samaniego underscored the need to position Paraguay as a destination for investment and new business.
Sources
About this note. Written by El Notero with assistance from artificial intelligence, based on what was published by the cited outlet. El Notero did not conduct its own reporting on this event.
