The Madrid summit witnessed the official closing of trade negotiations between the EU and the Central American countries of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Panama.
Heads of state signed off on the “trade pillar” of the association agreement today. In a joint statement, leaders said that they had achieved “an ambitious, comprehensive and balanced” outcome.
The trade deal will include “100 percent market opening for industrial products on both sides,” the statement said. The agreement will also allow European cars to enter the Central American countries’ markets free of tariffs over a ten-year period. New quotas will be implemented for trade in beef and rice, allowing more of each product to enter the European Union.

