Chile is celebrating 20 years of free trade with the U.S.
On June 6, 2003, Chile became the sixth country worldwide and the first from South America to have a free trade agreement (FTA) with the U.S. The agreement came into force on Jan.1, 2004, and since 2015, 100% of the bilateral trade enjoys free tariffs.
According to Chile’s government export promotion agency, ProChile, bilateral trade reached $35.4 billion in 2022, representing an annual average growth of 9.2% since 2003.
Chile celebrates two milestones in its relationship with the U.S. in 2023: 200 years of diplomatic relations and 20 years of the FTA, according to a news release from ProChile.
“As a small country, it was a historic milestone for us to sign this FTA,” Ian Frederick, ProChile’s trade commissioner in Los Angeles, said in the release. “It not only gave us access to sell our products in the largest economy in the world, but it also deepened our strategy to develop an open, competitive, and export-oriented economy.”
The U.S. is Chile’s second-largest trade partner, and it’s the biggest market for four export categories: food, nontraditional services, noncopper small- and medium-sized export companies, and women-led export companies, the release said.
Chile was the leading supplier of 51 products for the U.S. market last year, including fresh fruit such as grapes, cherries, oranges and apples; salmon filet; mussels; lithium carbonate; and refined copper, the release said.
Chile’s government aims to help more nontraditional Chilean companies to enter the American market, Frederick said in the release.
“In the last few years, we have launched different soft-landing programs for service industries, including tech, education and health. Chile is the most innovative country in Latin America, and our businesses have developed solutions that can be used in different markets, including the U.S.,” he said.
ProChile will host events in U.S. cities to celebrate the FTA’s 20th anniversary and 200 years of diplomatic relations, including a wine tasting in San Francisco, a cooking demo in New York and a discussion panel with local authorities in Miami, the release said.
U.S. imports of key Chilean fresh produce items in 2022:
Source: USDA
- Grapes: $751.6 million.
- Berries (excluding strawberries): $416.9 million.
- Citrus: $303.6 million.
- Cherries: $88.4 million.
- Apples: $85.2 million.
- Strawberries: $69.5 million.
- Peaches: $65.2 million.
- Plums: $40.8 million.
- Kiwifruit: $40.1 million.
- Avocados: $22.6 million.
- Pears: $16.5 million.
