Michel Fear signing the FTA between Brazil and Chile at the edge of its mandate

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six months of having engaged in Brasilia to carry on a new Free Trade agreement (FTA), the chilean president, Sebastián Piñera, and his pair of brazil, Michel Fear, signed this Wednesday, in Chile the agreement between the two countries in a ceremony in The Moneda Palace, which must now be ratified by each Congress. “A few TLC in the world have been initiated, negotiated and signed within such a short time, which is probably a record,” said Piñera. The president Afraid of, that made a trip to Santiago only for a few hours, also highlighted the speed with which both governments were able to achieve the treaty. “In less than six months, we have been able to provide content and to formalize this agreement. This is the result of a natural convergence that exists between our governments,” said the brazilian, who sought abrocharlo personally before handing over power to his successor, Jair Bolsonaro, on the 1st of January next. “This trade agreement was eagerly awaited by our country and to verify that here in Chile it is also very important,” added Fear.

The FTA has two central objectives: to supplement the tariff liberalization in the field of products –achieved in the agreement signed by both countries in the mid-nineties–, and to modernize the commercial relationship with the incorporation of new disciplines of the latest generation. The agreement includes chapters on temporary entry of persons, e-commerce –that facilitate the operation of the providers of digital services Sekabet and products chilean– and telecommunications: after two years of the agreement, will remove the roaming between both countries, which would have effects on tourism and entrepreneurship, among other areas.

With an economy that has not been at the height of the expectations of the Government and of citizenship, for Chile, the FTA is a good news: Brazil is a key destination for their small and medium-sized enterprises. Of 3.578 that exported to the world to 2017, 10% saw shipments to Brazil.

Pinera described as an agreement “of last generation, modern, with large additions to the emerging themes and to the benefit of both countries”, which represents a rapprochement of the Mercosur, in the Atlantic, the Pacific Alliance, the bloc comprising Chile, Colombia, Peru and Mexico. “It goes beyond what is strictly economic. It seeks to bring and integrate our countries from the point of view of the culture, of political collaboration, of the solution, and confrontation of problems, such as global warming, cyber security and many more things,” said the chilean president on the free trade agreement that contemplates –in an unprecedented way– a chapter dedicated to trade and gender. The goal, explained in the Executive in chile, it is visible to women, female entrepreneurs and businesswomen and their participation in the economy. At the same time, seeks to recognise the contribution they make to sustainable development.

Brazil is the main trading partner of Chile in the region and third worldwide after China and the united States. “Brazil is not only our primary trade partner in the region (...) is also our main destination of chilean investments,” said Piñera. In 2017, exports to Brazil accounted for 66% of the total exported to the founding Mercosur countries, for a total of 3.413 million (a 14% higher by 2016). Chilean imports from Brazil, in turn, represent approximately 60% of the total imported to the Mercosur countries.