Brazil, Argentina ink free-trade deal in car sector
Brazil and Argentina signed a commercial agreement for the automotive industry. The pact outlines the free trade of auto assets starting on July 1, 2029, with no conditionalities. The volume traded free of tariffs is expected to gradually increase until totally free commerce is attained.
Talks were finalized in Rio de Janeiro on September 6 by Brazil’s Economy Minister Paulo Guedes and Argentina’s Production and Labor Minister Dante Sica, and signed by diplomats from both countries in Montevideo, Uruguay, on Thursday (Oct 3).
Previous deals between Brazil and Argentina for the auto sector had been regularly renewed. The new text, however, is to be effective indefinitely.
Car products account for half of the trade of goods between the two nations. In 2018, Brazilian exports in this sector to Argentina totaled $7.5 billion.
In a joint statement, Brazil’s Economy and Foreign Ministries report the accord brings legal security and investment predictability to a significant section of Brazil’s industry. The treaty will also facilitate the adaptation of the car industry to the custom policies of Mercosur, where other goods circulate tariff-free and exported outside of the bloc with common external tariffs.
