Today-July 19
The Republic has become the third nation to ratify the landmark Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) trade pact, after Mexico and Japan, said the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) in a press release on Thursday (July 19).
The CPTPP is a “high-quality agreement” which will reduce market barriers and foster trade in a combined market of 500 million people with a gross domestic product of US$10 trillion (S$13.67 trillion), noted the MTI.
The agreement establishes rules in new areas such as e-commerce.
Minister for Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing said: “The CPTPP is an important agreement that will complement Singapore’s existing network of bilateral free trade agreements.”
The agreement will strengthen trade among countries in the Asia-Pacific, resulting in a more seamless flow of goods, services and investment, he added.
“Against the current backdrop of trade tensions and anti-globalisation sentiments, the CPTPP sends a strong signal of our commitment to trade liberalisation and a rules-based trading system,” said the minister.
“The CPTPP is an open and inclusive agreement and we welcome like-minded parties to join the CPTPP after it has entered into force.”
The CPTPP will enter into force 60 days after six of the 11 signatories ratify the agreement.
Japan took the lead in forging the CPTPP after President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of the TPP in January last year, saying he wanted to seek one-on-one deals that would be more beneficial to his country.
The 11 CPTPP signatories concluded negotiations on Jan 23 in Tokyo. The CPTPP was subsequently signed on March 8 in Chile.
Twenty provisions from the original TPP text were suspended temporarily — a majority of which relate to intellectual property protection.
Experts are holding out hope that Washington will rejoin the pact in future.
