The Brazilian Agriculture and Livestock Confederation (CNA) participated, this Thursday (10), in the seminar “Korea-Mercosur Trade Agreement”, promoted by the Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in São Paulo. The event addressed negotiations between the economic bloc and the Asian country from an economic, political, legal, technological and geopolitical point of view.
The agreement being negotiated provides for free trade in Korean products imported and exported to Mercosur. The Commercial Intelligence coordinator of the CNA International Relations Superintendency, Sueme Mori Andrade, participated in the panel “The political and agricultural dimension of the agreement”. She presented data on the trade balance between the two countries and stated that Korea is an important partner for Brazil. From January to August this year, of Brazil's total exports to Korea, 59% were agricultural products.
“We are in 4th position among food suppliers to Korea. It's a good position, but it could be much better, because Brazil does not have the advantages and preferences that other partners that have already signed an agreement have. We don’t compete on equal footing.”
In Sueme's assessment, a broad agreement with the Asian country would put Brazil in a more competitive position with the others and, in addition to tariff issues, which is a barrier for the sector due to high rates, it is also necessary to consider health issues and phytosanitary and the basket of agricultural products included in the agreement.
“Brazil is an agro-exporting country. So it is not possible to sit at a negotiating table without discussing the scope and ambition of this agreement on points such as sanitary and phytosanitary issues, for example. The CNA supports the agreement as long as it addresses these issues and guarantees real and concrete conditions for the access of agricultural products to the South Korean market.”
Sueme spoke of a study that CNA is developing on the possible impacts of the agreement on the agricultural sector and highlighted that the Confederation is in dialogue with the Ministries of Agriculture and Foreign Affairs, which are the bodies that conduct negotiations on the trade agreement.
In the “Economic Dimension” panel, the professor of International Economics and Chinese Economics at the Brazilian Institute of Capital Markets (IBMEC), Roberto Dumas Damas, highlighted the contribution of agriculture to Brazilian competitiveness, with the export of agricultural commodities.
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Damas defended the removal of Brazilian industries from the “comfort zone”, with the aim of modernizing them and increasing the country's competitiveness. The professor also stated that the free trade agreement with Korea will further open the market so that agriculture do not become totally dependent on China, being able to diversify the export list and bring technology to Brazil.
On the topic “Political/Industrial Dimension of the Agreement”, the head director of the Department of International Relations and Foreign Trade of the Federation of Industries of the State of São Paulo (Fiesp), Thomaz Zanotto, defended lower taxes for industrial production and stated that the partnership with Korea can happen with the transfer of technology, trade facilitation and technical-scientific knowledge.
In the “Legal Dimension” panel, the professor of International Law at USP, Gustavo Mônaco, highlighted the importance of knowing and debating the terms of the agreement, including with civil society. He highlighted that the treaty is legally possible. However, he highlighted that there is no obligation to publicize the terms before signing between the parties.
Consultant and law professor, Amenio dos Santos, discussed the current situation of Mercosur. For him, the agreement is a circumstance that must be viewed strategically due to its importance. However, negotiations for bilateral agreements must be accelerated.
“I advocate making the agreement as an umbrella, continuing negotiations, considering all aspects and peculiarities, but making a bilateral agreement that can be much more advantageous, faster, efficient and effective, both for Korea and for Brazil.”
The consul general of Korea, Hak You Kim, stated that the seminar's discussions will contribute to understanding the impacts of the agreement on the economies of Brazil and Korea. “The goal for all of us is to create a favorable environment to accelerate negotiations between the parties.” Kim highlighted that a free trade agreement will be positive for the recovery of the economies of countries involved in POST-COVID.
Source: DATA
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