The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a major trade deal that has been almost a decade in the making, has been reborn as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).
Eleven of the original countries involved in the TPP negotiations are set to sign the agreement in Chile in March – Japan, Canada, Australia, Mexico, Malaysia, Singapore, Chile, Peru, Vietnam, New Zealand and Brunei.
The notable exception to the new agreement is the US, which pulled out of the agreement after Donald Trump’s election as President.
“This is a multibillion-dollar win for Australian jobs,” Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull and Minister for Trade, Tourism & Investment, Steven Ciobo said in a joint statement. “Australian workers, businesses, farmers and consumers will benefit.
“The Government took a leadership role and worked hard to deliver the TPP because it will generate more Australian exports and create new Australian jobs.”
“The TPP will eliminate more than 98 per cent of tariffs in a trade zone with a combined GDP of $13.7 trillion. The agreement will deliver 18 new free trade agreements between the TPP parties. For Australia, that means new trade agreements with Canada and Mexico, and greater market access to Japan, Chile, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam and Brunei.”
Significant wins for Australian exporters under the deal include:
- accelerated reductions in Japan’s import tariffs on beef, where Australian exports were worth $2 billion in 2015–16 – under TPP-11, even better access;
- elimination of a range of cheese tariffs into Japan, covering more than $100 million of trade not covered by the Japan-Australia Economic Partnership Agreement;
- new quotas for wheat and rice to Japan, and for sugar into Japan, Canada and Mexico;
- elimination of all tariffs on sheep meat, cotton, wool, seafood, horticulture, wine and industrial products (manufactured goods);
- eleven separate deals – legally enforceable market access to all these countries; and
- investment meaning strong, legally enforceable commitments on the way countries regulate foreign investment.