Page "Economy of Chile" Paragraph 38

Successive Chilean governments have actively pursued trade-liberalizing agreements.

During the 1990s, Chile signed free trade agreements ( FTA ) with Canada, Mexico, and Central America.

Chile also concluded preferential trade agreements with Venezuela, Colombia, and Ecuador.

An association agreement with Mercosur-Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay-went into effect in October 1996.

Continuing its export-oriented development strategy, Chile completed landmark free trade agreements in 2002 with the European Union and South Korea.

Chile, as a member of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation ( APEC ) organization, is seeking to boost commercial ties to Asian markets.

To that end, it has signed trade agreements in recent years with New Zealand, Singapore, Brunei, India, China, and most recently Japan.

In 2007, Chile held trade negotiations with Australia, Thailand, Malaysia, and China.

In 2008, Chile hopes to conclude an FTA with Australia, and finalize an expanded agreement ( covering trade in services and investment ) with China.

The P4 ( Chile, Singapore, New Zealand, and Brunei ) also plan to expand ties through adding a finance and investment chapter to the existing P4 agreement.

Chile's trade talks with Malaysia and Thailand are also scheduled to continue in 2008.