Brussels, 04/05/2009 (Agence Europe) - In line with the hopes expressed at the bilateral summits of Berlin (June 2007) and Quebec (October 2008), this Wednesday's summit in Prague will see the European and Canadian leaders launch negotiations for a reinforced economic and commercial partnership between the EU and Canada. The future agreement will cover trade in goods and services, investment, public procurement, facilitation of trade, regulatory cooperation, intellectual property rights and the mutual recognition of professional qualifications. The future free-trade agreement will cover customs duty and non-tariff barriers. "This is a signal that the EU remains committed to the opening-up of the markets, even at times of economic crisis and increased protectionism", said Trade Commissioner Catherine Ashton, on 27 April, having obtained the Council's mandate to negotiate with Ottawa.
At this point, economic and commercial relations between the EU and Canada are governed by a framework agreement of 1976, which has been added to by a number of sectorial agreements. According to a feasibility study of 2007, which looked into the advantages of a closer partnership, increased liberalisation would lead to an extra €11.6 billion a year for the EU, 50% of which would arise from the liberalisation of services, 25% from the removal of customs duties and 25% from the reduction of non-tariff barriers. For Canada, the increase would be worth €8.2 billion annually.
With a share of 1.8% in the total extra trade of the EU, Canada is the 11th largest commercial partner of the EU27. The EU, which represents 9.8% of Canada's external trade, is Canada's second-largest partner. In 2008, bilateral trade in goods stood at €49.8 billion. Between 2000 and 2008, the exports of goods from the EU to Canada increased by €21.1 billion to reach €26.1 billion, whilst the EU's imports from Canada grew by €19 million to reach 23.8 billion. The commercial surplus of the EU27 remained stable at €2.3 billion in 2008. Products with higher levels of added value, such as machinery, transport equipment and chemical products, represent nearly half of the EU's exports to Canada and 32% of its imports. Agricultural and energy products constituted 17.6% of trade. Trade in services, particularly in the tourism and transport sectors, are on the increase. In 2007, the EU exported €11.7 billion worth of services to Canada and imported €9.6 billion worth of services from Canada. Lastly, investments constitute a major portion of Euro-Canadian trade. The direct foreign investments (DFI) of the EU in Canada increased sharply, from €11.9 billion in 2005 to €42.9 billion in 2007, whilst Canadian DFIs in the EU have risen from €8 billion in 2005 to €10.3 billion in 2007. (E.H./transl.fl)