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An addendum to the AC59 trade agreement will lower the import tariff on cars made in Argentina from 16.1% to 10%. Industry expects the deal signed in the second half of June. The Toyota Hilux, a Toyota SUV, and the Ford Ranger are the models in play.
After months of escalating tariffs, Ecuador will reduce duties on Colombian imports from 100% to 75%. Cosmetics, medicines, plastics, and automotive parts are the primary categories affected.
President Noboa ratified the SECA trade agreement with South Korea via Decreto Ejecutivo 359 on April 15, two days after the Asamblea approved it 83 votes. The deal eliminates tariffs on 98.9% of Ecuadorian exports to a 51-million-consumer market. Shrimp goes to 0% immediately. Bananas phase out over five years. Here's what's in it.
Ecuador's Production, Foreign Trade, Investment and Fisheries Minister Luis Alberto Jaramillo met with the Ecuadorian-American Chamber of Commerce in Guayaquil on April 14 to walk through the US Reciprocal Trade Agreement. Headline: 57% of non-oil exports get zero tariffs. Concerns: competition with subsidized US agricultural products.
Ecuador's monthly fuel price adjustment on April 12 could push low-octane gasoline past the $3/gallon mark for the first time in history. Extra and Ecopaís currently sit at $2.89/gallon; with the 5% monthly cap, they could reach $3.03. Diesel may hit $2.96. The driver: global oil price spikes from the Strait of Hormuz disruption.
Ecuador and Colombia have imposed tit-for-tat tariffs reaching 50% on hundreds of goods, putting approximately $2.8 billion in annual bilateral trade at risk. Colombia has also suspended electricity exports and faces retaliatory pipeline fee increases from Ecuador.
Ecuador's Constitutional Court has determined that the trade agreement negotiated with South Korea requires a full legislative vote before ratification — a higher procedural bar than the recently concluded U.S. deal.
Ecuadorians bought 11,342 vehicles in January 2026, the best January on record. Electric and hybrid vehicles now account for 22% of all sales. Azuay was the third-biggest market in the country.
