Ecuador Welcomes Extension of Preferential Tariffs

The Ecuadorian Foreign Ministry expressed satisfaction on Wednesday with the US Congress' decision to extend the Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication Act for another eight months.

The government will take advantage of that time to seek mechanisms to export domestic products to the United States permanently without paying taxes, Deputy Foreign Minister Rafael Paredes said.

Those privileges, which will expire on Saturday, must "be a permanent goal, not only with regard to the United States, but also with regard to all markets to which Ecuador have access, Paredes told a news conference.

The extension of the agreement is the result of joint work by the government and private businesspeople in the United States, he added.

For his part, Economic Police Minister-Coordinator Mauricio Davalos said that Ecuador will seek new trade deals.

Davalos pointed out that the government is drawing up the strategic guidelines for trade, especially regarding the opening of markets, but it will take into consideration the particularities of national production in the agricultural and agri-industrial sectors.

He ruled out, however, that Ecuador is moving forward to signing a Free Trade Agreement with the United States, in which case the domestic market would be completely opened.