Mexicos Senate finally approves Peru trade deal

MEXICO CITY (AFP) - Mexicos Senate has ratified a free trade deal with Peru, shortly after it was rejected by a Senate commission, after a last-minute push from the ruling party.
The close vote 55 for and 47 against passed late Thursday, following five years of negotiations between the two Latin American nations.
Without a doubt the measure will boost our possibilities to maintain the rhythm of growth in coming years, the Agriculture Ministry said in a statement Friday.
A Senate commission rejected the deal on Wednesday, under pressure from farm lobbyists who feared threats to key Mexican markets such as beans or avocados.
But Senator Juan Bueno Torio, from the ruling conservative National Action Party (PAN) led a last-minute bid to push it through, garnering support from the Ecologist Green Party of Mexico.
If the deal hadnt been approved it would give an incongruent message about our countrys wish to integrate with the Latin American economy, Torio said, according to a Senate statement. Antonio Mejia Haro, from the leftist Democratic Revolution Party (PRD), was one of the senators who rejected the move.
We have treaties with more than 50 countries... but the outcome has led to losses, Mejia said. The Senate also ratified a free trade deal with Central America late Thursday. Both deals are due to take effect in 2012.
The government had warned that if the Peru deal failed to pass, it would threaten the Pacific Accord trade deal between Mexico, Chile, Peru and Colombia, which was also signed in April.