Congress approved MERCOSUR's first free trade agreement with an Asian country

The Argentine Congress completed approval of the free trade treaty that MERCOSUR signed with Singapore in Rio de Janeiro on December 7, 2023 — the bloc's first with an Asian country. The Senate had approved it earlier; the Foreign Affairs and MERCOSUR committees of the Chamber of Deputies reported favourably on August 12, 2026, and on August 27 the Chamber gave it final passage with 234 votes in favor and 4 against. The agreement covers goods, services, investment and intellectual property, and takes the Asian country's tariff on Argentine exports to zero. ⚠️ What the Chamber's own release places alongside it, and is worth keeping: Argentina already runs a trade surplus with Singapore, but last year it exported LESS to Singapore than to Cuba. So today's size is small; what the agreement changes is the rule, not the volume. And one figure that is about scale: Singapore is one of the largest investors in port logistics in Buenos Aires. prob · Aug 27, 2026 ↗

Passed by Congress on August 27, 2026. Not yet enacted or published in the Official Gazette, and since it is a bloc treaty, its entry into force also depends on the other MERCOSUR members completing their own procedures. prob · Aug 27, 2026 ↗

Every Argentine exporter with a product that can be placed in Singapore — above all food and agribusiness — and anyone using Singapore as a gateway to Southeast Asia. And in the other direction, port logistics: Singapore is already one of the sector's largest investors in Buenos Aires, so the agreement lowers the regulatory cost for capital that is already here. thesis · Aug 12, 2026