They argue that joining the bloc offers growth potential for commercial partners who to date represent only 4% of total exports.
Enrique Egloff, president of the Chamber of Industries of Costa Rica provided support for this with figures which show that in 2015 Costa Rica's exports to the countries in the Pacific Alliance totaled $377 million and imports $1.786 billion.
The free trade agreement with Switzerland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Iceland will grant free access to these countries for 77% of primary agricultural products and those processed in Guatemala.
The entry into force of the FTA now depends on the approval of Congress and subsequent ratification by the Executive.
Dca.gob.gt specifies that "... the EFTA grants free access to 77% of primary and processed agricultural products from Guatemala, 10% of goods will have tariff preferences and 13% are excluded ... Guatemala meanwhile granted free access to 43.8 percent of primary and processed agricultural products, an additional 29 percent were liberalized in periods of 5 to 10 years, 0.8 percent will enjoy tariff preferences and 0.2 percent on a tariff quota to Switzerland, excluding 26.1 percent of articles.... ".
While the textile sector accounts for over 90% of total exports to the USA under the FTA, lack of training and compliance with requirements is preventing other sectors from taking better advantage of the trade agreement.
Lack of training, compliance requirements and inability to make the necessary investment to produce on a large-scale are some of the challenges faced by the sectors who are failing to take advantage of the trade agreement with the United States faces.
Analysis of the impact of the Trans-Pacific Partnership on the region.
The competition which sectors such as textiles could face is one of the elements raising questions among employers in the region, compared to the real benefits that could be accrued if Central America participates in the Strategic Economic Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP).
The presence of direct competitors, such as countries like Vietnam, in the textile sector, and the possibility of losing dominance in the American market due to trade rules that TPP countries must meet, is unsettling the productive sectors in the region and forcing a reckoning of the pros and cons of a possible entry to the block to be undertaken.
Central American exports destined for the EU in the first quarter of 2014 totaled $1,021,600,000, down 10.5% compared to the same period in 2013.
From a report entitled "Central America's Bilateral trade with the EU: Evaluation of the first quarter of 2014" by SIECA:
Part IV of the Association Agreement between Central America and the European Union (EU-CA) took effect for each of the Republics of the Central American side in 2013.
To date the Trade Pillar Committee has not yet been formed with representatives of each of the Central American countries, despite the entry into force of the Association Agreement on January 1st 2014.
Central America has not managed to harmonize and standardize regional interests in order to make use of the Agreement with the European Union. Nearly six months after its entry into force, they have not institutionalized mechanisms to comply with even short term commitments related to regional trade, such as the harmonization of trade regulations, customs administration and trade policy. This failure has consequences.
While the outgoing administration rushes through entry to the Pacific Alliance, one of the two possible next presidents is opposed to new treaties.
In a meeting with the Chamber of Exporters, Luis Guillermo Solís, presidential candidate of the Citizen Action Party, said that if he wins the Presidency of the Republic in April, he will slow the signing and negotiation of new FTAs.
Companies are preparing for the process of tariff reduction for imported goods and services from the United States under the FTA.
Starting 2015 various products will be able to come into Nicaragua from the U.S. tax free. Employers are now preparing for the tariff reduction process of the Free Trade Agreement between the U.S., Central America and Dominican Republic (DR -CAFTA).
On March 24, the Guatemalan Exporters Association will give a presentation on business opportunities in Chile.
From a statement issued by the Guatemalan Exporters Association (Agexport) reads:
The Department of Business Information and Market Intelligence AGEXPORT, INFOEXPORT in partnership with the institution of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Chile, PROCHILE, is to hold on March 24, 2014, a presentation on the opportunities for exports and imports in Chile and on the evolution of trade relations between the two countries since the entry into force of the FTA.
In 2013 the Colon Free Zone traded $2.7 billion less than in the previous year.
During the past year the commercial movement in the Colon Free Zone (CFZ) closed at $27.9 billion, whereas in 2012 it recorded $30.8 billion, equivalent to a reduction of 9.4%.
According to the Superintendency of Banks of Panama (SBP), the decrease is due to the situation occurring with the two main trading partners of the businesses in the CFZ, Colombia and Venezuela.
Exporters of dehydrated ethanol claim that the U.S. is applying an ad valorem tax of 2.5% which is outside of the provisions of DR-CAFTA.
According to Anabel González, the Minister of Foreign Trade (Comex), Costa Rica has not exported the product during the second half of 2013, because the annual quota for receiving the benefits is 31 million gallons.
The Council of the European Union has approved Guatemala's application to the trade pillar of the Association Agreement with Central America.
From a press release by the Government of Panama:
The Council of the European Union met today at its headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, and confirmed the implementation of the Trade pillar of the Association Agreement between this institution and Guatemala starting December 1st.
The Honduran maquiladora industry is increasingly benefiting from the agreement which stimulates and protects Canadian investments coming into the country.
This industry has shown great optimism after the approval of the trade agreement. "We will have several advantages," says Daniel Facussé, president of the Honduran Maquila Association (AHM).
The country will ask the European Union to discuss the geographical designations in parallel so that the agreement can enter into force in December.
This was explained by Estuardo Castillo, president of the Guatemalan Association of Exporters (Agexport), who added that "this is what Costa Rica did and there was a good result."
"... he also said that if that does not happen, it is possible to negotiate the extension of the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP +), however, he said that with this system only 52% of the cuotas pay less taxes and quotas for sugar, shrimp , honey and agricultural products could be granted to other countries ", reported Prensalibre.com.