On November 14, under the joint witness of President Xi Jinping and Peruvian President Boluarte, Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao and Peruvian Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism Ursula Leon Chempen, on behalf of their respective governments, signed the Protocol to Upgrade the Free Trade Agreement between the Government of the People’s Republic of China and the Government of the Republic of Peru in Peru’s capital Lima.
China and Peru signed the free trade agreement in April 2009, initiated negotiations to upgrade the China-Peru Free Trade Agreement in November 2018, and concluded the negotiations substantially in June 2024. Based on the original agreement, the protocol optimizes seven existing provisions, including rules of origin, customs procedures and trade facilitation, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, intellectual property rights, trade in services, temporary entry of business personnel, and investment. Five new provisions are added: standards and conformity assessment cooperation, competition policy, e-commerce, global supply chains, and environment and trade. The signing of the protocol is conducive to tapping the potential of bilateral trade and investment cooperation, creating a better business environment for companies of both countries, better protect and promote two-way investment, and deliver more tangible benefits to people of both countries.
Following the signing, the two countries will undertake their respective domestic legal approval procedures to expedite the protocol’s entry into force and implementation.