The agreement opens up the EU market for almost all Ecuadorian export products.

Following a provisional stage, the agreement signed by the European Union (EU) and Ecuador entered into force (link in Spanish) in November 2016. This formalization was announced in the EU’s Official Journal.

Ecuador’s minister of foreign trade, Juan Carlos Cassinelli, explained that “the agreement (link in Spanish) ensures that 99.7% of Ecuador’s Ecuador’s export supply of agricultural products and 100% of its industrial and fishery products will enter the EU tariff free. It also allows us to preserve the Andean price band system, contemplates agricultural safeguards, supports the solidarity-based economy, and protects infant industry,” he added.

“The projected increase in exports to the EU is approximately US$480 million for this year. We currently export US$2.7 billion worth of products per year,” Mr. Cassinelli said during an even to provide public information on the international agreement (link in Spanish), which was held at the auditorium of the School of Economics at the University of Guayaquil.

At the same time, the deputy minister of foreign trade, Humberto Jiménez, gave a presentation to business people at the Quito Chamber of Commerce to explain the tariff elimination processes for export products.