Canada’s Minister of International Trade was in Chile last week promoting the international trade and investment between the two countries.
During his visit to Chile, François-Philippe Champagne met with government and business leaders discussing the benefits of progressive trade, as well as to commemorate the twentieth anniversary of the Treaty of Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between Canada and Chile.
Bilateral merchandise trade between Canada and Chile has more than tripled since the Canada-Chile Free Trade Agreement entered into force in 1997, reaching $ 2.4 billion in 2016.
The value of Canada’s direct investment in Chile amounted to more than CAN$ 15 billion by the end of 2015, consolidating Chile as the main destination for Canadian investments in Central and South America, and placing it as the tenth global destination.
During his two-day visit, Minister Champagne closed deals between Canada and Chile in the sectors of trade, investment, defense, energy, mining, education, as well as science, technology, and innovation.
On March 15, Minister Champagne represented Canada at a high-level dialogue on Integration Initiatives in Asia-Pacific organized in Viña del Mar by the Government of Chile – currently chaired by the Pacific Alliance.
The Pacific Alliance member countries and signatories of the Trans-Pacific Agreement (TPP) were also invited to the dialogue.
The meeting was also represented by South Korea and China, who play important roles in international trade in the Asia-Pacific region.
The Pacific Alliance is a regional integration initiative created in 2011 by Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru that seeks the free circulation of goods, services, capital and people. In 2012, Canada became the first non-Latin American observer country of the Alliance.