CONCLUSION OF TRADE AGREEMENT NEGOTIATIONS BETWEEN MERCOSUR AND SINGAPORE
During the meeting of Council of the Common Market (CMC), Mercosur announced the conclusion of Free-Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations between Mercosur and Singapore, which should reduce the bloc’s Common External Tariff (TEC) for about 90% of products. In total, the parties held 6 rounds of negotiations since their initiation, in 2019.
The agreement covers the following topics:
- trade of goods,
- rules of origin,
- trade facilitation and customs cooperation,
- technical barriers to trade (TBT),
- sanitary and phytossanitary measures (SPS),
- micro and small enterprises,
- services,
- investiments,
- intellectual property,
- government procurement,
- e-commerce,
- trade defense,
- dispute resolution.
This is the first trade agreement between Mercosur and a southest asian country. There is expectation that the agreement can serve as entrace door for Mercosur exports in the Pacific region.
In 2021, Singapore imported around USD 5,8 billons in brasilian products, mainly crude oil and fuel, nearly 85% of Brazilian exports to the country. Brazilian imports from Singapore were of around USD 843 million, mainly in equipment parts and pieces and agricultural inputs.
Next steps: the agreement will still undergo legal review, be signed and proceed to the parties’ parliaments for approval and later enactment.
For more information on the enactment procedure of trade agreements in Brasil, see study of Brazilian National Confederation of Industry (CNI) prepared by our team, available at https://static.portaldaindustria.com.br/media/filer_public/26/90/26904215-eec7-45e3-a746-02d3d74801ee/225392_processo_de_internacionalizacao_web.pdf.