On Wednesday, Ambassador Kirk met with Peruvian Prime Minister Salomón Lerner Ghitis. Ambassador Kirk highlighted the importance of Peru to the United States, both in terms of the bilateral work under the United States – Peru Trade Promotion Agreement (PTPA) and in terms of the leadership that Peru continues to show in seeking ambitious outcomes in APEC and in the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations.
Ambassador Kirk and Prime Minister Lerner discussed bilateral issues including the benefits of increased trade under the PTPA, the importance of small- and medium-sized businesses for both countries and on-going collaboration in the labor and environment sectors. They also discussed Peru’s progress in implementing the environmental provisions of the PTPA with respect to Forest Sector Governance and recent measures proposed by Peru that could affect agricultural biotechnology.
U.S. goods exports to Peru in 2010 totaled $6.8 billion, with top export categories of machinery, mineral fuel, electrical machinery, plastics and vehicles. Top U.S. exports of agricultural products to Peru included wheat, cotton, coarse grains and soybean meal. U.S. foreign direct investment in Peru (stock) was $7.9 billion, concentrated mainly in the mining sector.
