According to www.lanacion.com.ar, several weeks ago, after the World Trade Organization (WTO) gave Argentina until December to stop using Advance Import Affidavits (DJAI), the Argentine government convened different representatives of industrial sectors so as to prepare new protectionist models, based on quality, sanitary barriers or anti-dumping clauses.
Paraguayan exporters have observed this situation and expressed their disagreement and concern about the possible trade barriers that might be imposed by the neighboring country, under the name of "new rules".
Something negative
In this regard, the vice president of the Paraguayan Chamber of Exporters (Capex), Sebastian Gonzalez, said the Argentina's intentions were very negative for the region and for the Argentineans. He said that if the neighboring country redeployed trade barriers, the Paraguayans would be forced to migrate to other markets in search of new alternatives. "This is more of the same, it will prolong the agony of the region and Argentina," said Gonzalez.
Hugo Franco, the owner of San José Obrero, a banana exporting company, said a new obstacle after the annulment of the DJAI would strongly hurt domestic exporters. "Argentina should remember that Paraguay has been very permissive with their products. There are several fruits and vegetables entering Paraguay, there are more fruits and vegetables from Argentina than domestic products in the domestic market," he said.
He added that, since Argentina imposed restrictions, Paraguayan producers had had many losses because they had been unable to export and there had been an oversupply of national fruits and vegetables in the domestic market that had caused prices to fall and losses for producers.
Tariff measures
In this context, the Vice Minister of Economic Relations and Integration, Rigoberto Gauto, said that a request for the removal of non-tariff measures that are hurting interregional trade would be added to the pro tempore framework of the presidency of Mercosur, which the country will adopt this month.
"Paraguay will work so that external relations are real, in the sense that Mercosur allows the signing of free trade agreements with other regions, but always in conjunction with the countries that make up this market," said Gauto.
Source: lanacion.com.py