The Minister of Economy stressed that the agreement will boost exports, investments and predictability for Argentina, with the European Union as a strategic partner.
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The Minister of Economy, Luis Caputo, welcomed the entry into force of the agreement between the European Union and Mercosur, which he defined as “an asset of enormous strategic value for Argentina”. The implementation of the understanding marks a turning point for the country's foreign trade and opens a new phase for Argentine exports to one of the most important markets
in the world.
According to Caputo, the European Union is currently the destination of one in four Argentine exporting companies and represents the country's second largest export destination, with a commercial flow of goods close to 9 billion dollars. In this context, the agreement appears to be a key tool for expanding markets, generating predictability and strengthening productive sectors with a high
federal impact. The minister's post on the social network X (former Twitter)
The minister noted that, as a result of the agreement, domestic exports to the European Union are projected to increase 76% over the first five years and 122% over ten years. This growth would be explained by an improvement in agro-industrial sales, with items such as meat, fishing, peanuts, wines, citrus fruits and products from regional economies, in addition to a strong expansion in industrial goods
and emerging products.
Among the sectors with the greatest potential, Caputo mentioned energy, copper and lithium, areas in which Argentina seeks to consolidate itself as a relevant global player. The trade opening agenda promoted by the Government of Javier Milei points precisely to the country leaving behind decades of confinement, obstacles and lost opportunities to competitively integrate into the
world.
The agreement will also have an impact on foreign direct investment. Caputo noted that the European Union is the second global source of investment after the United States and the main source of foreign direct investment in Argentina, with a stock of 75 billion dollars, equivalent to about 40% of the total received by the country
.
In terms of tariffs, the European Union granted concessions on some 7,000 products and will liberalize 92% of imports from Mercosur. Of that total, 74% will be opened immediately and the rest within a period of up to ten years. For Argentina, this means that 99% of agricultural exports to the European Union will benefit.
Caputo stressed that this is a significant step forward compared to one of the world's most protectionist economies in agriculture, where average tariffs are around 12.6%. The reduction of these barriers represents a concrete opportunity for sectors that for years had to compete with external obstacles and internal restrictions
