The president referred to the obstacles imposed by the neighboring country in recent years and affected local businessmen.
President Luis Lacalle Pou He questioned that the businessmen of Uruguay have “serious complications to export to Argentina”, when speaking during the summit of the Mercosur about the series of obstacles imposed by the outgoing government of Alberto Fernandez.
In his speech before the other heads of state of the regional bloc, the Uruguayan president assured that these obstacles occur “not only in income, but also in collection” and assured that he was referring to “products that are consumed in Argentina, not artificial economy”.
At the same time, Lacalle Pou did not hesitate to point out against the functioning of the Mercosur, stating: “I have a trade balance deficit with the three countries.” Thus, he not only mentioned the bilateral relations with Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay, but he filed his claim for a FTA with China. “In addition, as a whole, the bloc’s participation in our foreign trade has decreased and China and other countries have grown,” he observed.
The restrictions of the Argentine government
Outbound management in Argentina promoted several protectionist measures that were felt by Uruguayan businessmen and it is not the first time that the government of Lacalle Pou speaks out. Among the initiatives is the launch of a fiscal package to tax imports of goods and freight at 7.5%, launched by the Minister of Economy, Sergio Massa, last July.
Added to that decision was the payment of services abroad, reached by the COUNTRY tax, which is 25%, while the Federal Public Revenue Administration (AFIP) The neighboring country reduced by 25% the quota allowed for importing companies to carry out purchases abroad through the import system. Financial Economic Capacity (CEF), generating a notable impact on some large companies.
He Executive estimates that there are at least 600 import permits for Uruguayan goods pending authorization by Argentina, something that he hopes will be modified after the assumption of Javier Milei, which will occur this Sunday, December 10.
It is that the designated chancellor Diana Mondino rated the SIRAs as “an extortion mechanism that creates obstacles and has no benefit”, so it is anticipated that in the coming months the system that affected the Uruguayan export sector by at least 22.5 million dollars will no longer work, according to data from the CIU.
However, since Chamber of Industries of Uruguay (CIU) warned that there are 13 firms that are in a critical situation, with unauthorized imports for 4.5 million dollars. In addition, there are companies that have frozen exports worth 18 million dollars.
Source: Ambito
