Free trade agreement between Ukraine and Canada comes into force

Ukrinform | 1 August 2017

Free trade agreement between Ukraine and Canada comes into force

The free trade agreement between Ukraine and Canada officially comes into force on August 1, and Canada will now cancel customs duties on 99.9% of Ukrainian imports.
"Canada made a present to us on the Constitution Day: we received a government note on the completion of all internal procedures for the entry into force of the free trade agreement," Ukrainian Ambassador to Canada Andriy Shevchenko said, announcing the launch of the free trade area.

He recalled that from August 1, the agreement cancels 98% of tariffs for Ukrainian goods that will be sold to Canada. Some 72% of tariffs are immediately canceled for Canadian goods, and in the next seven years duty free exports will grow to 98%. The agreement also mutually opens up public procurement markets. Certain sections of the document protect e-commerce and intellectual property.

The agreement was signed on July 11 last year during a visit by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to Kyiv.

The Ministry for Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine predicts that in the short-term the Ukrainian producers of sunflower oil, confectionery, alcoholic beverages and beer, juices, clothing, ceramics, as well as Ukrainian metallurgical and chemical plants, will benefit from the free trade agreement with Canada.

At the same time, officials estimated that the cancellation of Ukrainian customs duties on Canadian goods would lead to $1.2 million worth of losses for the state budget in the first year of the effect of the agreement, but expects that later this will be offset by increased foreign investment. According to government forecasts, due to the liberalization of trade with Canada, Ukraine could receive 3.5 percent of the growth of exports. The Ukrainian government hopes that the free trade area with Canada will help create up to 600 new jobs in Ukraine every year.

source : Ukrinform

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