Upgraded China-Peru Free Trade Agreement Takes Effect November 1: Bilateral Trade Reaches $50.4 Billion
China's Ministry of Commerce announced on November 1 that the protocol upgrading the China-Peru free trade agreement had taken effect that day. The protocol improves seven chapters of the original agreement and adds five new ones, in the most comprehensive update of the two countries' trade rules since the original pact entered into force in 2010.
The China-Peru free trade agreement was signed in April 2009 and took effect in March 2010, the first comprehensive free trade agreement China signed with a Latin American country. The two sides launched upgrade talks in November 2018, announced their substantial conclusion in June 2024 and signed the upgrade protocol on November 14, 2024. With both sides having completed their domestic approval procedures, the protocol entered into force on November 1, 2026.
The seven improved chapters cover rules of origin, customs procedures and trade facilitation, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, intellectual property rights, trade in services, temporary entry of business persons, and investment. The five new chapters, added as standalone chapters, address standards and conformity assessment cooperation, competition policy, e-commerce, global supply chains, and environment and trade.
An official with the ministry's Department of International Trade and Economic Affairs said the protocol's entry into force is a concrete step by China to uphold the rules-based multilateral trading system. The full text has been published on the China FTA Network website, where companies and individuals can consult the provisions.
In the 16 years since the original agreement took effect, bilateral trade has grown steadily, rising from $6.4 billion in 2009 to $50.4 billion in 2025, an almost sevenfold increase, with China remaining Peru's largest trading partner for many consecutive years. Peruvian exports to China such as copper, blueberries and avocados, along with connectivity projects including the Chancay Port north of Lima, form part of the two countries' economic cooperation.
The two sides also agreed to pursue negotiations on negative lists for trade in services and investment following the protocol's entry into force, to further open their markets.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：秘鲁卡亚俄港集装箱码头。卡亚俄港是秘鲁第一大港，中秘贸易货物多经秘鲁各港往来。秘鲁卡亚俄大区政府（GORE Callao）官方照片，公共领域，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: The container terminal at the Port of Callao, Peru's largest port. Official photo by the Regional Government of Callao (GORE Callao), public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
