{"id":213648,"date":"2026-03-13T21:05:58","date_gmt":"2026-03-13T20:05:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/efecomunica.efe.com\/?p=213648"},"modified":"2026-03-13T23:05:22","modified_gmt":"2026-03-13T22:05:22","slug":"mercosur-eu-trade-agreement-shines-catalyst-business-idb-annual-meetings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/efecomunica.efe.com\/en\/mercosur-eu-trade-agreement-shines-catalyst-business-idb-annual-meetings\/","title":{"rendered":"Mercosur\u2013EU trade agreement shines as catalyst for business at IDB annual meetings"},"content":{"rendered":"

Luque (Paraguay), Mar 13 (EFE).- The trade agreement between Mercosur and the European Union<\/strong> dominated the opening of the third day of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group\u2019s annual meetings<\/a> in Paraguay on Friday, at an event attended by senior representatives from both blocs who highlighted its potential as a catalyst for investment and growth.<\/p>\n

Paraguayan President Santiago Pe\u00f1a<\/strong> said that, despite the quarter century it took to sign the agreement, the fact that the two regions that \u201cshare values\u201d were able to reach such a consensus \u201csends a very important signal to the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pe\u00f1a noted that his country has learned that \u201csustainable growth<\/strong> is deeply linked to quality and openness to the world,\u201d and that, for this reason, Asunci\u00f3n understands \u201cthis agreement not only as a trade opportunity, but as an opportunity for economic transformation.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Paraguayan leader acknowledged that \u201cinternational agreements alone do not generate development,\u201d but that they do \u201copen doors.\u201d He also praised IDB\u2019s support in helping the country grow \u201cbetter\u201d through initiatives that encourage improving standards, investing in infrastructure, strengthening human capital, and supporting companies, especially small and medium-sized businesses, \u201cso they can take advantage of the opportunities that arise.\u201d<\/p>\n

In that regard, IDB President Ilan Goldfajn<\/strong> said during the symposium that the institution is \u201cthe only multilateral bank with members from both Mercosur and the EU,\u201d and therefore serves as a \u201cnatural bridge\u201d and a strategic facilitator in the current context.<\/p>\n

Pe\u00f1a emphasized his government\u2019s commitment to supporting the growth and development process that will come with the trade deal by implementing public policies to invest in infrastructure, technical training, and digitalization, and above all by establishing strong institutions \u201cto provide legal certainty for those who invest.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Luque <\/a>
Luque (Paraguay), 13\/03\/2026.- Paraguay’s President Santiago Pena speaks at a high-level dialogue event during the 2026 Annual Meetings of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Boards of Governors in Luque, Paraguay, 13 March 2026. The IDB Group Annual Meetings are being held from 11 to 14 March 2026. EFE\/EPA\/JUAN PABLO PINO <\/div> <\/div>
\"Luque <\/a>
Luque (Paraguay), 13\/03\/2026.- IDB Group President Ilan Goldfajn speaks at a high-level dialogue event during the 2026 Annual Meetings of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Boards of Governors in Luque, Paraguay, 13 March 2026. The IDB Group Annual Meetings are being held from 11 to 14 March 2026. EFE\/EPA\/JUAN PABLO PINO <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Mauro <\/a>
Mauro Vieira (L), Minister of Foreign Affairs of Brazil, takes part in a high-level dialogue in Luque, Paraguay, 13 March 2026. The free trade agreement (FTA) between Mercosur and the European Union dominated the start of the third day of the annual meetings of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group, being held in Paraguay, during an event with senior representatives from both blocs who highlighted its potential as a catalyst for investment and growth. EFE\/ Juan Pablo Pino <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n

The key role of the private sector<\/h2>\n

At the same time, he stressed that ultimately \u201ccompanies, entrepreneurs, and investors<\/strong> are the ones who turn opportunities into real growth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Paraguay\u2019s Minister of Economy and Finance, Carlos Fern\u00e1ndez Valdovinos<\/strong>, his country\u2019s governor at the IDB Group, agreed with that perspective, saying that the public administration \u201cprepares the field,\u201d but \u201cthe private sector is the one that plays the game.\u201d<\/p>\n

For his part, European Commissioner for Trade Maro\u0161 \u0160ef\u010dovi\u010d<\/strong> congratulated Asunci\u00f3n, in a prerecorded video message, for carrying out a rapid approval process for a treaty that will create a common market of \u201c720 million consumers\u201d<\/strong> and will be highly useful at a time of \u201cgrowing global unpredictability.\u201d<\/p>\n

Paraguayan Foreign Minister Rub\u00e9n Ram\u00edrez Lezcano<\/strong>, who also participated in the event alongside the foreign ministers of Brazil and Uruguay, Mauro Vieira<\/strong> and Mario Lubetkin<\/strong>, and Argentina\u2019s Secretary for Production Coordination, Pablo Lavigne<\/strong>, said that, following the expected approval in parliament on Tuesday, the agreement will be fully ratified by March 31 to enter provisional implementation in Paraguay.<\/p>\n

Lubetkin, for his part, highlighted the willingness shown by the four Mercosur member countries, despite their differing political agendas, to sign a trade deal that aims to eliminate 90% of tariffs applied to trade between the two blocs and create the world’s largest free trade zone.<\/p>\n

Lavigne, in turn, called for true \u201cregulatory harmonization\u201d within Mercosur itself so that small and medium-sized enterprises in its four member countries face far fewer obstacles at their respective customs checkpoints. EFE<\/p>\n

\"The <\/a>
The Foreign Minister of Uruguay, Mario Lubetkin, takes part in a high-level dialogue in Luque, Paraguay, 13 March 2026. The free trade agreement (FTA) between Mercosur and the European Union dominated the start of the third day of the annual meetings of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group, being held in Paraguay, during an event with senior representatives from both blocs who highlighted its potential as a catalyst for investment and growth. EFE\/ Juan Pablo Pino <\/div> <\/div>
\"Luque <\/a>
Luque (Paraguay), 13\/03\/2026.- Paraguay’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Ruben Ramirez Lezcano takes part in a high-level dialogue event during the 2026 Annual Meetings of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Boards of Governors in Luque, Paraguay, 13 March 2026. The IDB Group Annual Meetings are held from 11 to 14 March 2026. EFE\/EPA\/JUAN PABLO PINO <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Pablo <\/a>
Pablo Lavigne (L), Secretary for Production Coordination at the Ministry of Economy of Argentina, takes part in a high-level dialogue in Luque, Paraguay, 13 March 2026. The free trade agreement (FTA) between Mercosur and the European Union dominated the start of the third day of the annual meetings of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group, being held in Paraguay, during an event with senior representatives from both blocs who highlighted its potential as a catalyst for investment and growth. EFE\/ Juan Pablo Pino <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Luque (Paraguay), Mar 13 (EFE).- The trade agreement between Mercosur and the European Union dominated the opening of the third day of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group\u2019s annual meetings […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":198164071,"featured_media":213652,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[127474],"tags":[125647],"class_list":["post-213648","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-finance","tag-idb"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nMercosur-EU agreement dominates IDB Group annual meetings<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The trade 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