MERCOSUR and Singapore Meet in Asunción for Trade Agreement Talks

Meetings began this week in Asunción as part of the Fifth Round of Negotiations between MERCOSUR and Singapore, with the aim of concluding a Free Trade Agreement between the two parties during the current semester. The first part of this 5th Round took place in Singapore from May 9 to 13 this year.

The meetings involved around 70 negotiators and experts from both sides, working in the groups on Trade Remedies, Technical Barriers to Trade, Services, Electronic Commerce, and Legal and Horizontal Affairs.

Concluding this agreement is a priority for MERCOSUR as Singapore is a key trade and investment partner for the bloc. In 2021, MERCOSUR’s exports totaled USD 5.929 billion, while imports amounted to USD 1.252 billion.

This agreement not only represents a diversification of trade flows and improved conditions for investment between the two parties—particularly with Singapore, a major global source of capital—but also an alignment of trade disciplines with the highest global standards.

Paraguay is coordinating the negotiation on behalf of MERCOSUR, and its delegation includes diplomats and experts from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock.

Singapore’s chief negotiator is Dr. Francis Chong of the Ministry of Trade and Industry. The MERCOSUR delegations are headed by Minister Luis Levit (Argentine Republic), Minister Philip Fox-Drummond Gough (Federative Republic of Brazil), Ambassador Enrique Franco (Republic of Paraguay), and Ambassador Alejandra De Bellis (Oriental Republic of Uruguay).