On November 22, during President Xi Jinping’s state visit to Chile and witnessed by the leaders of the two countries, Chinese Minister of Commerce Gao Hucheng and Chile Minister of Foreign Affairs Heraldo Mu?oz Valenzuela signed the Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Commerce of China and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Chile on Launching the Upgrading Negotiation of China-Chile Free Trade Agreement, announcing to start the upgrading negotiation officially.

China-Chile FTA was signed in November 2005 and has come into effect since October 2006, mainly covering goods trade and cooperation. It is the second FTA China signed with foreign countries, and also the first FTA signed between China and Latin American countries.