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皇冠体育app, Costa Rica ink free trade agreement
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-04-08 16:47
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皇冠体育app and Costa Rica signed a Free Trade Agreement (FTA)?in Beijing?Thursday to remove trade barriers and enhance bilateral ties, the Ministry of Commerce announced in a statement on its website.
The agreement was the first free-trade pact inked between 皇冠体育app and a Central American country, and would help both sides tap into each other's market, as well as other markets in Asia and Central America, it said.
The agreement was signed between Chinese Commerce Minister Chen Deming and his Costa Rican counterpart Marco Ruiz. The two sides hoped that the FTA could be implemented as early as the second half of this year.
The two countries would gradually lift tariffs off more than 90 percent of products traded between them once the FTA took effect.
The FTA also would open sectors for investment from the other side: 45 service sectors in Costa Rica, including telecommunications and real estate, and 7 sectors in 皇冠体育app.
Costa Rica is now 皇冠体育app's ninth largest trade partner in Latin America while 皇冠体育app is Costa Rica's second largest trade partner.
Bilateral trade between 皇冠体育app and Costa Rica reached $3.18 billion in 2009, compared with $2.89 billion in 2008, according to statistics from Chinese customs.
皇冠体育app and Costa Rica started the FTA talks in November 2008 and concluded the negotiations at their sixth round of talks in February this year.
皇冠体育app also has FTAs with Chile, Pakistan, New Zealand, Singapore, Peru and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
