Seventy per cent of text of Moldova-China Free Trade Agreement accepted after new round of talks

Chisinau, 19 September /MOLDPRES/ - The third round of negotiations on the Free Trade Agreement between Moldova and China has ended successfully. The third round of talks was held in Chisinau on 17-19 September and Moldova’s team of negotiators was led by the state secretary in the field of quality infrastructure and international cooperation, Iuliana Dragalin.   

According to a press release by the Economics and Infrastructure Ministry’s communication and media information service, the negotiations were conducted constructively and productively, so that the sides advanced considerably as to the legal text of the Agreement, and as a result, more than 70 per cent of the legal text has been accepted. Also, most proposals made by Moldova’s team of negotiators during the previous rounds were accepted. The discussions were focused on legal and institutional provisions, origin rules, sanitary and phyto-sanitary obstacles to the trade. A new element included in the Agreement refers to investments, which will facilitate the attraction of Chinese investments in the branch sectors of Moldova’s economy.   

At the same time, the sides started discussions on principles of tackling tariff concessions. Thus, Moldova’s team of negotiators has the goal to protect Moldovan producers and get removal of customs duties on potential products for export, such as farming goods and some industrial products.

The fourth round of negotiations will be held in Beijing in next November. The signing of the Free Trade Agreement with China is part of the goals provided for in Moldova’s strategy of attracting investments and promoting exports. Earlier, a joint feasibility study has been carried out with the Chinese side on the opportunity to launch and eventually sign the Agreement. According to the study’s estimations, Moldova’s exports to China might increase by 39.85 per cent and the Gross Domestic Product could grow by 0.42 per cent.

Data by the National Statistics Bureau shows that the Moldovan exports to the Chinese market increased by 30.9 per cent in 2017 and the imports – by 26.4 per cent. China last year ranked fifth on a Top of ten countries from which Moldova buys goods, with an import turnover of 505 million dollars. The tendencies of strong increase of Moldovan goods’ exports to the Chinese market maintained in the first seven months of 2018, when an advance of 30.9 per cent was recorded, while the imports of Chinese products grew by 29.3 per cent.   

Wines and grapes, optic instruments, furniture represents the biggest share of Moldova’s export to China and chemical products and metal articles prevail in the structure of imports.

Official data shows that 85 companies with Chinese capital work in Moldova and the capital invested in the first six months of this year stands at almost 6.36 million lei.  

(Reporter V. Bercu, editor L. Alcaza)