Lebanon, Turkey Sign Free Trade Agreement to Boost Ties

By Massoud A. Derhally - Nov 25, 2010

Lebanon and Turkey signed a free trade agreement late yesterday night to help boost ties between the two countries during Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s visit.

“This agreement is a new beginning for the relations between Lebanon and Turkey and its conclusion reflects our continuous commitment to develop the strong economic and commercial relations between us,” Prime Minister Saad Hariri said in an e-mailed statement. Official talks regarding the accord started six years ago, he said.

Trade volume between Turkey and Arab countries rose to $29 billion in 2009 from $13 billion five years earlier, Erdogan said in June. More than 2,000 Arab companies operate in Turkey, he said. Turkey and Lebanon had agreed in June on establishing a free trade zone that also includes Jordan and Syria.

Under the Turkish-Lebanese accords, industrial products have been divided into three groups, with some products becoming exempt from custom tariffs as soon as the Lebanese Parliament endorses the agreement, Hariri said. Tariffs on the second group of industrial products will be gradually freed from tariffs over five years.

Hariri and Erdogan also agreed to establish a joint committee to oversee trade ties.

Source: Bloomberg.
Link: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-11-25/lebanon-turkey-sign-free-trade-agreement-to-boost-ties.html.