Europe – Latin America: EU-Colombia-Peru Trade Agreement Approved

The European Council concluded a trade agreement between the European Union and two Latin American countries, Colombia and Peru, with the possibility of Ecuador joining the agreement in the future. According to a statement from the European Council, “this is the final stage of the ratification process through which the parties commit themselves to a close and long-term commercial relationship that also concerns services, intellectual property, public procurement, and human rights.”

The agreement will gradually open markets, which is a positive process that will increase both trade and investment between the two sides. Brussels recalled that “most of the agreement has been applied on a provisional basis since 2013, while the ratification of the agreements should finally ensure full implementation starting November 1, 2024, giving greater legal certainty to this commercial relationship.”

As emphasized in the press release, “the trade agreement should lead to the opening of markets for goods, services, public procurement and investment, and to an improved environment for trade through new rules on non-tariff barriers, competition, transparency, and intellectual property rights. In addition, a more stable and predictable business environment will be created through the bilateral dispute resolution mechanism and the non-tariff barrier mediation system.”

European Union Member States are currently the third largest trading partner and major investor of Colombia and Peru: in 2023, total EU trade with these Andean countries amounted to about 33 billion euros.