Ecuador surpasses Colombia and Peru in GDP growth

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Ecuador is one of the countries that have benefited the most from the trade agreements that States of the region have with the European Union (EU) since the treaty that has already completed five years has represented a growth of 0.16% of the gross domestic product (GDP) in the years of application of the agreement.

This figure exceeds those experienced by Colombia or Peru, according to the analysis of Inmaculada Montero, trade counselor of the Delegation of the European Union in Ecuador, who participated in an event organized by the Official Spanish Chamber of Commerce and Industries of Quito to take stock of the five years of the trade agreement between the EU and Ecuador.

The event, sponsored by Kypross and Universae, was well attended by business people and companies.

Carmen Sánchez-Laulhé, president of the Chamber, pointed out that trade agreements have proven to be a tool for competitiveness and productivity, allowing Ecuador to open up to the world, generating employment and opportunities.

“The agreement with the European Union marked a turning point for Ecuador and its foreign trade,” said Sánchez-Laulhé, who noted that while it is true that Ecuador still has few agreements compared to other cases in the region, she highlighted the Government’s expectations of wanting to close between three and four new treaties before the end of this year, including with Mexico, South Korea, and China.

Montero added that the agreement allowed an important development for several Ecuadorian industries, especially the agri-food industry, whose exports to the EU increased by 6%. As an example, she said, one out of every three bananas consumed in the EU comes from Ecuador.

Bananas are Ecuador’s leading non-oil export product in the EU. According to figures from the Central Bank of Ecuador, in January and February of this year, the country sent fruit for US$183 million to the bloc. Shrimp followed with US$172 million.

Meanwhile, in the specific case of the bilateral relationship between Ecuador and Spain, Carla Cohí, Economic and Commercial Counselor of the Embassy of Spain, analyzed the trade agreement’s impact from that perspective.

She indicated that after implementing the agreement with the EU, Ecuador reached a record in its bilateral trade with Spain, being very balanced, with a coverage rate (the percentage of exports covered by imports) of 99.9%.

“The Spanish and Ecuadorian economies are complementary,” said Cohí, who pointed out that in a single year, the number of Ecuadorian companies exporting to Spain rose from 4,000 to 13,000.

He highlighted the resilience of the Ecuadorian economy, “which, in 2021, not only recovered the export figures to Spain before the pandemic but surpassed them, thanks in large part to the agreement with the EU”.

However, he recalled that Spain is currently negotiating the renewal of the bilateral investment treaty, which ends in June. He pointed out that the signatories are committed to respecting foreign investments as their own, providing legal certainty to all parties.

With information from El Universo