EU'S BILATERAL TRADE AND INVESTMENT AGREEMENTS

According to IMF estimates, over the next years, 90% of world demand will be generated outside the EU. That is why it is a key priority for the EU to open up more market opportunities for European business by negotiating new Free Trade Agreements with key countries. If the EU were to complete all its current free trade talks tomorrow, it could add 2.2% to the EU's GDP or €275 billion. This is equivalent of adding a country as big as Austria or Denmark to the EU economy. In terms of employment, these agreements could generate 2.2 million new jobs or additional 1% of the EU total workforce. Below is an overview of the most important on-going and concluded free trade negotiations.  The EU has already in place trade agreements with some 50 partners.  

On-Going Negotiations

1. United States of America ( The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP)
2. Agreement on investment with China
3. Canada (Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA)
4. Japan (Free Trade Agreement
5. Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) The FTA with Singapore, was initialed in Singapore on 20 September 2013. In the meantime, the negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement continue with Malaysia and Vietnam. Thailand started bilateral negotiations with the EU only later.
6. Southern Mediterranean - The EU has completed so far two rounds of negotiations for a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (DCFTA) with Morocco. The Commission has also a mandate to start a similar process with Tunisia, Egypt and Jordan.
7. India (Free Trade Agreement)
8. Mercosur  (EU-Mercosur Association Agreement)
9. Gulf Cooperation Council – Negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement were suspended by the Gulf Cooperation Council in 2008. Informal contacts between negotiators continue to take place.
10. African, Caribbean and Pacific countries (ACP) – Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs. )Seven regional groups: West Africa, Central Africa, Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA), Eastern African Community (EAC), South African Development Community (SADC) EPA Group, the Caribbean (CARIFORUM) and the Pacific. The EU continues the talks with all of them except CARIFORUM that signed a full Economic Partnership Agreement already in 2008.The EU Negotiations are now entering a decisive phase in the Eastern African Community (EAC) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) EPA Group. In the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa progress is uneven. The EU has twelve trade negotiations under way and several more trade and development negotiations (EPAs) ongoing.  

Free Trade Agreements Finished but Not Yet Applied

1. Eastern Neighbourhood – The EU has recently concluded negotiations for a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) with Moldova, and Georgia. Ukraine  (Deep and comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (DCFTA).
2. Singapore – Free Trade Agreement (FTA)
3. There are also five interim Economic Partnership Agreements with African, Caribbean and Pacific States that have been negotiated but have not yet entered into force. These are with Cote d'Ivoire, Central Africa (Cameroon), the Southern African Development Community, Ghana and the East African Community.

Free Trade Agreements Already in Place

1. Central America (Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama)
2. Colombia and Peru
3. South Korea
4. Mexico (Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement)
5. Economic Partnership Agreements are being implemented in with three regions: the Caribbean (fifteen CARIFORUM states), the Pacific (the only country currently applying is Papua New Guinea) and Eastern and Southern Africa (four ESA countries - Zimbabwe, Mauritius, Madagascar, the Seychelles).
6. South Africa  (Trade, Development and Co-operation Agreement)
7. Chile (Free Trade Agreement)

On top of these "classic" free trade deals, Free Trade Agreements are a core component of many Association Agreements as well as Customs Unions (Andorra, San Marino, Turkey). Hence the EU also has free trade deals in force with a number of countries and territories in Europe (Faroe Islands, Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia) and the Southern Mediterranean (Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestinian Authority, Syria, Tunisia) and three with African, Caribbean and Pacific countries (Caribbean, Pacific and Eastern and Southern Africa). Trade provisions of the agreement with Syria are currently not applied.

Listed Countries  (Alphabetical Listing)

• Albania
• Algeria
• Andorra
• Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Cameroon
• Canada  
• Chile
• Colombia
• Costa Rica
• Cote d'Ivoire
• Egypt
• El Salvador
• Faroe Islands
• FYR of Macedonia
• Georgia
• Ghana  
• Guatemala
• Honduras
• Iceland
• India
• Israel
• Japan  
• Jordan.
• Lebanon
• Madagascar
• Malaysia
• Mauritius
• Mexico
• Moldova
• Montenegro
• Morocco
• Nicaragua
• Norway
• Palestinian Authority
• Panama
• Papua New Guinea
• People’s Republic of China  
• Peru
• San Marino
• Serbia
• Seychelles
• Singapore
• South Africa  
• South Korea
• Switzerland
• Syria
• Thailand
• Tunisia  
• Turkey
• Ukraine
• United States of America  
• Vietnam
• Zimbabwe