China-Costa Rica Free Trade Agreement (FTA) entered into force on August 1, 2011. It is the 10th FTA China reached and executed.
The China-Costa Rica FTA features wide coverage and high degree of openness. Over 90 percent of goods trade between China and Costa Rica will enjoy zero tariff on a stage-by-stage basis. For China, goods trade covers products from textile industry, light industry, machinery, electronics, vegetables and fruits, automobiles, chemicals, hide and leather, and for Costa Rica, it covers coffee, beef, pork, pineapple juice, frozen orange juice, jam, fish powder, minerals and hides. In service trade, 45 service sectors and sub-sectors of Costa Rica, including telecommunication services, commercial services, construction, real estate, distribution, education, environment, computers and tourism services, and 7 service sectors and sub-sectors of China, including computer services, real estate, market research, translation and interpretation and sport, will further open to each other, based on their respective commitments to WTO. The two countries also reached agreements on such issues as IPR, trade relief, rules of origin, customs procedures, technical barriers to trade, health and plant inspection and quarantine and cooperation. More information can be found at "China Free Trade Area Service Internet" (fta.mofcom.gov.cn).
China-Costa Rica FTA negotiation was launched in January 2009. After intensive negotiations for more than a year, the two parties signed the agreement in April 2010. The negotiation and signing of China-Costa Rica FTA showed the determination of China and Costa Rica in strengthening cooperation and joining efforts for mutual benefits and win-win outcome. The implementation of the agreement will deepen bilateral cooperation in goods trade as well as cooperation in services and investment, and shall further enhance the development of bilateral relations. In recent years, China and Costa Rica enjoy good cooperation in the fields of bilateral trade, investment, contracted projects and labor services, and bilateral economic and trade relations have been developing rapidly. Costa Rica has become China's important trading partner in Central America, while China is Costa Rica's second-largest trading partner after the United States. According to statistics by China’s Customs, bilateral trade reached US$ 3.8 billion in 2010, up by 19.2% of that in 2009, of which China export to Costa Rica was US$ 690 million, and China import from Costa Rica was US$ 3.11 billion. Costa Rica is becoming one of China’s primary destinations for investment and trade in Central America.
Up to date, China has signed FTA with ASEAN, Chile, Pakistan, New Zealand, Singapore, Peru and Costa Rica. Besides, the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) between Mainland and Hong Kong and Macao, and the Cross-Straits Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) were also signed and implemented. China now is negotiating FTA with Australia, the Gulf Cooperation Council (including six countries of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Oman, Qatar and Bahrain), Switzerland, Norway and Iceland.
