The European Union and Mexico have completed the last stage of negotiations for a new trade agreement. The negotiation was started in 2016 and will probably enter into force some months from now, as the text needs to be approved by the Council and Parliament.
The agreement with Mexico stands out because it includes issues that have not been previously taken into account in such agreements, such as environmental issues, and includes the commitment to effectively implement the Paris Agreement on climate change. The trade protocol is part of a broader agreement that also covers the protection of human rights and contains chapters on political cooperation and development cooperation.
This will also be the first EU trade agreement to include provisions to fight corruption, with measures to fight bribery and money laundering, according to a note from the European Commission.
Regarding the Spanish-Mexican fruit and vegetable trade, the volumes exported by Spain are very low, although they have been growing in recent years, going from 12 tons in 2015 to 879 tons in 2019. This growth has been due to plums, as 865 of the 879 tons exported in 2019 corresponded to this fruit from Extremadura, according to data from the Department of Customs and Special Taxes processed by FEPEX.
Meanwhile, Spanish fruit and vegetable imports from Mexico are more numerous and totaled 41,588 tons in 2019. The products that Spain import the most from Mexico are avocado with 26,710 tons, banana with 7,064 tons, lemon with 2,069 tons, and mango with 2,105 tons.
Before entering into force, the EU-Mexico Agreement will have to be legally reviewed, translated into the languages of the EU member countries, approved by the Council and Parliament, and then signed.
Source: fepex.es