The Commom Market of the South

THE COMMON MARKET OF THE SOUTH 
MERCOSUR

The Common Market of the South - Mercosur was created on March 26, 1991 with the signing of the Treaty of Asunción by Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay. Among its objectives are: the creation of a zone for the free circulation of goods and services, the creation of a Common External Tariff (TEC), the coordination of international policy and macroeconomic policies, as well as the harmonization of national laws in specific sectors.            

The institutional structure of Mercosur was defined by the Ouro Preto Protocol on 1994, which created the Council of the Common Market (CMC), the Common Market Group (GMC), the Mercosur Trade Commission (CCM), the Joint Parliamentary Commission, the Economic and Social Consultative Forum and the Administrative Secretariat.

The Mercosur Trade Commission is the technical body responsible for managing the common trade policy instruments, including issues related to competition. The Technical Committee No 5 on Competition Defense (CT5) was created, in order to cover competition matters.

There are legal instruments of competition theme that govern the relations between the State-Members: the Competition Defense Protocol, the Agreement on the Regulation of the Competition Defense Protocol and the Common Understanding on Cooperation of the State Members of Mercosur for the Enforcement of theirs National Competition Laws.  Recently, the Agreement of Competition Defense of Mercosur (MERCOSUL/CMC/DEC. Nº 43/10) was signed, revoking the Competition Defense Protocol of Mercosur, which is still in proceedings of implementation by the State-Members.

The Competition Defense Protocol of Mercosur was signed on December 12, 1996 and enacted in Brazil by the Decree nº 3.602 of September 18, 2000. 

Mercosu website: http://www.mercosur.int