Latin America trade relations : overview and figures : in-depth analysis

Trade relations between the EU and Latin American countries have come back into the spotlight in recent years. Collectively, the countries forming the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) represent the fifth largest trading partner of the EU. The EU has concluded agreements with two Latin American (LA) groupings (Cariforum and the Central America group) and with four other Latin American countries (Mexico, Chile, Peru and Colombia). The FTAs concluded by the EU with Latin American countries differ considerably in terms of coverage and methodology depending on the time at which they were concluded and the context of the negotiations. The EU now aims to modernise the oldest FTAs, concluded with Mexico and Chile, in order to align them to the current standards of EU FTAs. The longstanding negotiations on a comprehensive trade agreement with Mercosur - which would mean the EU then had trade agreements with nearly all of Latin America - are yet to pick up pace, however.