What Are the First Results of the Association Agreement with the EU?

Although the EU Association Agreement has been provisionally in force for only two months (since 1 September 2014), it is already producing tangible effects. Thanks to the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area with the EU (DCFTA), any producer that has implemented EU standards can export to that market without customs duties. The infographic is also available in Russian. Even though the Association Agreement implies benefits in the medium and even long term (5-7 or even 10 years), in the first 2 months after implementation it has already brought certain tangible effects. It is important that these benefits have been felt precisely by the agro-industrial sector, which is considered the most sensitive to trade liberalisation with the EU. In reality, we see an impressive increase, in September-October 2014, in exports of wine (+26%), apples (2.7 times), plums (8.1 times), table grapes (5.8 times), frozen sweet corn (over 3 times) and cereals (+77%). The increases are expressed relative to the previous year, thus eliminating the seasonal factor. Moreover, exports grew so impressively despite a high comparison base (2013 was a very fruitful year). The infographic was developed on the basis of the Policy Brief “The first tangible results of the Association Agreement with the EU?”. The infographic is also available in Russian. Download resources