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SINGAPORE: Singapore plans to sign a free trade agreement with the Pacific Alliance, which includes Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru, next year, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s press secretary said on Friday (December 11).
A “substantial conclusion” in the agreement has been reached after three years of negotiations, Ms. Chang Li Lin said.
Mr. Lee Hsien Loong attended the 15th Pacific Alliance Summit via video conference on Friday, his first participation in the annual meeting. Singapore was invited as an Associate State Candidate of the alliance.
“After three years of negotiations, we have made significant progress and the FTA between the Pacific Alliance and Singapore has managed to reach a substantial conclusion,” Chang said.
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at the Pacific Alliance Summit on December 11, 2020 (Images: MCI)
Strengthening economic ties between Singapore and the alliance will boost trade and investment, provide greater opportunities for businesses and strengthen ties between the two regions, he added.
“We look forward to the signing of the PASFTA next year and the deepening of economic ties.”
In a press release issued after the summit, Trade and Industry Minister Chan Chun Sing said that the agreement will allow greater access to Pacific Alliance markets for Singaporean companies.
The Pacific Alliance is collectively the eighth largest economy and the seventh largest exporter in the world. In 2019, Singapore’s total goods trade with the alliance was S $ 6.1 billion, representing 33.2 percent of its total goods trade with Latin America.
The president of Chile, Sebastián Piñera, was the host of the summit. Also present were the President of Colombia, Iván Duque, the President of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, and the President of Peru, Francisco Sagasti.
