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Ecuador
Free Trade Agreement with China
Ecuador and China have closed ten months of negotiations with a new free trade agreement (FTA) that began with with Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso’s official visit to Beijing last February. The roadmap focuses on a variety of trade policies, including reducing tariffs to broaden market access, improving customs procedures, trade facilitations, protocols for sanitary measures, rules of origin, and reducing technical barriers. The FTA will allow preferential access for 99 percent of Ecuador’s current exports, mostly agricultural products, to China’s market of almost 1.5 billion consumers, helping to boost employment, economic growth, and investment. The official signing date will be announced by both countries soon.
This map depicts the status of free trade agreements between Latin America and either the U.S. and China. Click on the map to learn more.
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Graphic Source: Barron’s
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China
Philippines & China Hold Talks
The governments of China and the Philippines have agreed to new measures encouraging peaceful discussion over disputes in the South China Sea following a visit by Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos to his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping. The South China Sea is a vast stretch of ocean surrounded by several countries all making various territorial claims over the waters. China has historically made an expansive claim on most of the waters, delineated by what has come to be known as the “nine-dash line,” which was rejected by the U.N. after the Philippines sought arbitration. Both the Philippines and China are trying to encourage new trade and investments following years of COVID lockdowns, and the meeting between their presidents included the message that the South China Sea dispute does not constitute the whole of the two countries’ relationship.
This map depicts the South China Sea and the competing territorial claims by surrounding countries. Click on the map to learn more.
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Graphic Source: Anadolu Agency
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United States
Storms Alleviating West’s Drought
Severe storms hitting the West Coast this past week have lowered the severity of the drought status in California and Nevada. Portions of the two states were previously under “exceptional drought” status, the highest level of concern. However the atmospheric rivers that have brought an influx of rainfall to the region have reduced that extreme status, according to U.S. Drought Monitor. While exceptional drought conditions have been alleviated, the increase in moisture won’t be enough to fully eradicate the decades of drought in the two states, while also bringing new concerns of the effects from the immense rainfall. Major cities like San Francisco and Los Angeles are experiencing flooding as a result of the barrage of rainfall inundating the state, with about 90 percent of California residents under flash flood watch on Thursday.
This map depicts the intensity of drought across the Golden state as of January 3rd. Click on the map to learn more.
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Q: In what city can you find the world’s largest urban forest?
A: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Located in the heart of Rio de Janeiro, Tijuca Forest or Tijuca National Park is the world’s largest forest to coexist with a city. The contemporary park and its surrounding forests cover 15 sq miles (40 sq km) and are the result of reforestation efforts in the 1800s, with over 100,000 trees planted between 1861 and 1887. The forest is split into three sectors, Sector A – Tijuca Forest, Sector B – Serra da Carioca, and Sector C – Pedra Bonita and Pedra da Gavea. Sector A is great for hiking and recreational activities, and includes the largest urban trail in Brazil, Transcarioca. Sector B hosts one of the seven wonders of the modern world, Christ the Redeemer, which is located at the top of Corcovado Hill. Completed in 1933, at 98 feet (29 m) tall, Christ the Redeemer has become the face of Rio and is the largest art deco statue in the world. Sector C of Tijuca Forest provides an apparatus for extreme sports and adventure, such as climbing, gliding, and rappeling, and Pedra Bonita has become one of the most famous and busiest ramps in the world for gliding.
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Q: Due to its geographical position, what island nation is considered a major link between western Europe, the eastern Caribbean, and parts of the South American mainland?
Stay tuned for the answer to today’s question in Monday’s DailyGeo.
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