About six months after its ratification by the Algerian Parliament, and one month later by European Parliaments, the Association Agreement between Algeria and the European Union (EU) comes into force on 1st September 2005, paving the way for the establishment of a free trade area with European markets by 2017.
It should be mentioned that negotiations on the Association Agreement ended in December 2001, and it was initialled by the two parties on December 19, 2001.
According to APS, the immediate effects of this implementation will be felt particularly in trade, where the two sides agreed on a progressive approach in the dismantling of customs duties in a geographical space where Algeria currently imports for an amount of more than $10 billion and exports for more than $18 billion. The EU takes some 63% of Algeria’s exports and supplies 58% of its imports. The trade balance is in Algeria’s favour.
