MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Mercosur, Canada resume FTA talks

Negotiators and technicians met on Friday in Brasilia

Canada and the Southern Common Market (Mercosur) further explored on Friday a possible free trade agreement (FTA) during a meeting in Brasilia between chief negotiators and technical teams.

 The resumption of talks follows Canada’s Minister of International Trade, Maninder Sidhu, visiting Brazil in August 2025, where he met with Vice President Geraldo Alckmin. On that occasion, both sides reaffirmed their interest in deepening economic dialogue and reactivating the negotiation agenda.

Topics under discussion include market access, trade facilitation, technical barriers, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, services and investments, intellectual property, and environmental issues.

According to Brazilian Government sources, the move reflects Mercosur’s commitment to pursuing modern, balanced, and mutually beneficial trade agreements.

Brazil's Industry Ministry, also headed by Alckmin, explained that the negotiations with Canada followed the model of those already concluded with Singapore, the European Union (EU), and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) - a group of non-EU countries comprising Iceland, Norway, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein. (Source: Agencia Brasil)