Bolivia expects to boost trade with Asia via access to Peruvian port

Bolivia has been given access to Peru's Ilo port, which will cut the distance to its Asian export markets by some 40 percent, Development Planning Minister Viviana Caro said Sunday.

Caro said Bolivian President Evo Morales and his Peruvian counterpart Alan Garcia signed a document on Tuesday to re-launch the Ilo agreement, which grants Bolivia access to a port in Ilo for 99 years.

"The distance from Ilo to China is 15,300 km. The transportation to the Asian markets from the Atlantic coast (Brazil or Argentina) covers 23,000 km on average. So the distance and transportation costs will be significantly reduced," Caro said.

The Ilo agreement was first signed in 1992 but had not been enforced.

Caro said the move was one of many strategic projects launched by Bolivia to reduce transport costs and boost the export of minerals and grains.

The exact amount of time and costs saved depends on the volume, load, means of transport and destination of the products, he added. (Source:xinhua)