Lima, Friday Sept 14th: United States Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez said after meeting with incumbent Peruvian President Alan Garcia that a free trade agreement with Peru “is the first on the list” in the U.S. Congress for approval. Gutierrrez went on to say that “FTA with Peru is doing very well, it is the first on the list. I want to say that this progress would not have been possible without Garcia’s leadership and stamina.”

A USA-Peru free trade agreement or Commerce Promotion Accord, was first signed in April 2006, under former Peruvian president was Alejandro Toledo. Following negotiations and demands by US political parties, ammendments were made to further enhance labor, environmental issues and intellectual property rights.

Free trade talks with other Andean countries [Colombia and Ecuador] have stalled and a USA-Peru deal could be viewed as a positive step to encourage talks to resume, although many in the USA are concerned over alleged unfair labor practices. Earlier this summer a Central American Free Trade Agreement was signed.

The US Department of State quotes that “Free Trade Agreements (FTA) with Peru, Colombia, ….will open large and growing markets for American businesses, farmers, ranchers and workers – removing barriers to goods and services exports, establishing secure and predictable legal frameworks and providing strong protections for investment and intellectual property……Taken together, Peru, Colombia and Panama constitute our [USA’s] 3rd largest export market in Latin America.”