Malaysia-Chile FTA to take effect by end-2011

0

ZERO TARIFF: Niqman says among products under the 6,960-item list of products to enjoy zero tariff upon being exported to Chile will include electronic and electrical products, vulcanised rubber, surgical gloves, vegetable fats, butter and oil as well as parts of aircraft.

KUCHING: Malaysia can expect to see the free trade agreement (FTA) signed with Chile to take effect by the end of this year, says Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (Matrade).

The FTA was signed by both countries in November last year, following the negotiation that was first undertaken in 2007.

“The Chilean import tariff is already low, at about six per cent, which has created a lot of competition in the market.

“With the FTA, Malaysian companies get to enjoy zero per cent tariff for 90.2 per cent of its export products going into Chile, which represent 6,960 lines of products,” Matrade’s trade commissioner of Santiago in Chile, Niqman Rafaee Mohd Sahar told The Borneo Post when met at a Matrade event here recently.

Among products under the 6,960-item list would include electronic and electrical products, vulcanised rubber, surgical gloves, vegetable fats, butter and oil as well as parts of aircraft.

“A few other products from Malaysia will have zero-tariff going into Chile in the third year after implementation, due primarily to the existing availability of such products in Chile; thus, warranting its delay for the zero-tariff eligibility,” added Niqman.

For the January-June period this year, total bilateral trade between Malaysia and Chile reached over US$183.23 billion, registering a healthy growth rate of 12.84 per cent from more than US$162.38 billion in the same period last year, according to data global business and market information provider from Lexis Nexis.