LatinNews Daily - 14 June 2023

* Peru’s deputy foreign trade minister, Teresa Mera, has said good progress was made in negotiations to update the country’s free trade agreement (FTA) with China, the fifth round of which concluded on 2 June. Mera told national daily Gestión that “we’ve advanced a great deal – we’ve practically finished the chapter on rules of origin, we’re moving forward in customs facilitation and intellectual property”. She said that “we’re very optimistic that we will soon complete these negotiations,” which will resume in August. Peruvian authorities have previously warned that the FTA with China, which was signed in 2009, is becoming outdated due to changes in international trade over the past decade. Peru’s government is also negotiating an FTA with Hong Kong, which it hopes will be signed late this year or in early 2024. Mera said that negotiations on the Hong Kong FTA are currently focussed on facilitation and on developing an attractive investment framework.