LatinNews Daily - 27 August 2019

* Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro has celebrated the conclusion of a trade deal between the Southern Common Market (Mercosur), made up of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay, and the European Free Trade Association (Efta), comprised of Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein, as “one more big victory for our trade opening diplomacy”. The deal was concluded after ten rounds of negotiations, which began in January 2017, and establishes commitments on the withdrawal and reduction of tariffs and on regulatory matters. Brazil’s national industry confederation (CNI), a private sector lobby, expects the deal to open the market for Brazilian products such as aluminium, flat-rolled iron, chemical products, and auto-parts, as well as increase quotas on agricultural products. The Brazilian government hopes the deal will increase GDP by US$5.2bn in 15 years. The deal must now be ratified by the Mercosur and Efta member countries. It is already facing resistance from the Swiss agricultural sector. 

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