A proposal has been made to reactivate the process so that the commercial agreement, which was approved by the Peruvian congress in 2013, completes the ratification process in the South American country and enters into force.
The main factor that has delayed the entry into force of the Free Trade Agreement between Guatemala and Peru has to do with the conflict that arose in 2013 due to the tariffs imposed by the Andean nation on imports of sugar from Guatemala, which resulted in the Guatemalan government filing a complaintwith the WTO.
Not fearing free trade, lowering tariffs and facilitating business development are some of the ingredients the Chilean export model that Central America could follow.
In an interview with Elfinancierocr.com, ProChile's director, Roberto Paiva, explained that one of the main reasons behind the success of his country's foreign trade model is the high degree of trade liberalization.Not only for having reduced tariffs, but also for"... 'having negotiated trade agreements. We have agreements with Europe and much of Asia. We don't yet have Africa.This opening not only lowers tariffs but brings us closer to the market and the business'. "
Fifteen years after the first approach was made, the countries have not reached an agreement on the conditions of entry of products such as textiles, meat and sugar.
Since 2001, Guatemala and Canada have been trying to close negotiations to create a free trade area between the two markets. Besides pending negotiations related to phytosanitary issues, labor and environment, the definition of the terms of trade of products such as sugar, textiles, beef and pork has still not been made concrete, and there is no light at the end of the tunnel.
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.... ".
Several years after conversations began, Central America and South Korea finally started the formal negotiations for a free trade agreement.
From a statement issued by the Government of Guatemala:
In Houston, Texas, the Minister of Economy of Guatemala, Sergio de la Torre, and his Central American counterparts in charge of foreign trade, met with Korean Minister of Commerce, Industry and Energy Yoon Sang-Jick, to start negotiating the Free Trade Agreement between the Republic of Korea and the Central American republics.
Peru has requested to block Guatemala´s incorporation to the alliance due to a dispute over tariffs which started in 2013.
Peru requested that Guatemala not be part of the Pacific Alliance because of a trade conflict between both nations which started in 2013. This Central American country complained to the World Trade Organization (WTO) the Peru established a band of income taxes for sugar according to variations in international prices, something that was not agreed to when the FTA was negotiated.
The Pacific Alliance has become the largest market in Latin America and an attractive investment for companies in third party countries who want to use it.
"In 2012, the Gross Domestic Product of the Pacific Partnership (AP by its initials in Spanish) grew by 5%, two points higher than that recorded by the global economy. FDI remained at an acceptable rhythm, with $71.045 billion, of which over $30 billion was destined for Chile.
Meanwhile, a new meeting between the economy and trade ministers of Central America will take place on May 5th, in Guatemala.
Even though there are many rumours about it, there still nothing confirmed regarding the resumption of the negotiations between Central America and Europe, after the parties failed to reach an agreement on the most sensitive topics for both.
The European Union expects Central America to phase out tariffs on 90 percent of its products under a proposed free trade agreement between the two regions.
But Karl-Friedrich Falkenberg, the EU's deputy director of foreign trade, said the proposal would be put on the table when the two sides meet in Lima at the summit of leaders of the EU, Latin America and the Caribbean.