Georgia starting free trade with China
By Messenger Staff
Thursday, October 6
Georgia and China have signed a deal on the completion of free trade talks, which means the world’s largest consumer market, will open for Georgia from mid-2017.
The document was signed by first Vice-Prime Minister and Minister of Economics Dimitri Kumsishvili, and the Minister of Commerce of China, Gao Hucheng, on October 5.
The signing ceremony was attended by Prime Minister of Georgia Giorgi Kvirikashvili and other state officials.
Kumsishvili stressed that talks between China and Georgia ended in the “shortest time”.
“It took just seven months thanks to effective work applied by both governments,” Kumsishvili said.
He thanked the Chinese side for being constructive during the negotiations and expressed gratitude for the continued support and assistance.
Since the agreement takes effect from the next year, the world's largest market with about 1.4 billion consumers will open for Georgia.
Georgia is the first country in the region to sign a free trade agreement with China, Georgian officials said.
Georgia and China began discussing the possibility of free trade regime in September 2015.
Already this year, Georgia exported 3.5 million bottles of wine to China – a 158 percent increase year-on-year, according to the Government of Georgia.
