Supporting the constitutional sustainability of the approval process of the trade agreement signed between Ecuador and China, the Ecuadorian Federation of Exporters (Fedexpor) presented amicus curiae in favor of this instrument at the Constitutional Court (US) on Monday, September 11.

Behind publication of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) in the Official Register On August 28, the ten-day period in which citizens could defend or challenge the partial or full constitutionality of the agreement expired. Previously, the Constitutional Court established in its opinion that the free trade agreement requires legislative approval before ratification by the President of the Republic.

According to Fedexport, China has become the largest commercial destination for foreign exchange generation in non-oil exports.

Using this resource, the organization Ecological Action presented a amicus curiae contesting the Free Trade Agreement, in which they stated that they were concerned about several points, between the chapters on investment and economic cooperation, as well as the application of the Free Trade Agreement.

While Fedexpor is in favor of that in its arguments, it explains the benefits of the agreement and asks the plenary session of the CC to declare the constitutionality of the SST, through a positive opinion that makes the continuation of the internal procedure for approving the agreement sustainable.

“From a legal perspective, Fedexpor has demonstrated the full compatibility of the constitutional provisions included in Articles 304, 421 and 284 of the Magna Carta with the negotiating texts and the expected effects in favor of production, employment and strategic inclusion in the global economy,” it marks the union.

The trade agreement between Ecuador and China continues its approval process, creating concern on the one hand and optimism on the other

In the document, the exporters point out that the Chinese market has become the largest commercial destination for generating foreign currency in non-oil exports with more than 5.7 billion dollars in 2022, so “deepening commercial ties with China can strengthen more foreign exchange earnings from increased exports to strengthen dollarization, supported and created new jobs and increased production for the agricultural and food sector in the country.”

Likewise, Fedexpor claims a significant increase in Chinese food imports from around the world by around 12% in recent years, a problem that – according to this agreement – Ecuador’s export food sector could take advantage of.

According to exporters, it should be taken into account that at the moment there are direct competitors such as Chile, Peru and Costa Rica that have a trade agreement with China that guarantees preferential access to their products in that market, while Ecuador faces high tariffs on products with high expansion potential , such as bananas (10%); non-traditional fruit (12-30%); roses (10%) and shrimp which could face a duty of up to 5%.