Indonesia should thoroughly analyze the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) that was approved on Monday by the USA, Japan and 10 other economies in the Pacific region that account for 40 percent of the world’s economy before making up its mind as to whether to join the new regional free trade pact within the medium or long term. Other countries signing up to the deal include Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru and Singapore. Trade agreements have historically boosted export and import flows between participating nations, leading to higher-paying jobs and improved living standards. The pact also covers intellectual property and bans digital tariffs on electronic transmissions. “It includes the strongest commitments on labor and the environment of any trade agreement in history, and those commitments are enforceable, unlike in past agreements”.
Advertisement
“Now that the USA and China seem to have lost the momentum for their own Bilateral Investment agreement (a notable absence during Xi Jinping’s trip to the US), Europe could-for once-become a frontrunner in the negotiations with China and have the USA follow if it so wishes”, Herrero said.
This is because the economic gains from trade trade don’t come from exporting more, or from preferential market access. The agreement has also been pitched as a way to counter China’s rising economic and political clout in the region. A public posting of the text must occur 60 days before the signature. It took months, and several legislative setbacks, before Barack Obama won the authority to fast-track a congressional vote on TPP. However, trade deals face a hard road during election years, and there is only a short window between the busiest time in the primary schedule and the presidential nominating conventions in July. Among Democrats, all three leading presidential candidates are now against TPP. Australian sugar exporters gained additional access to the US market, while Japan opened its market for rice, beef, and pork exports from the United States and other parties.
“Those are products where competition is going to be fierce”, he said.
In that vein, she said she opposed then-pending trade agreements with Korea, Columbia, and Panama.
While the TPP deal has been signed by the delegations of the 12 countries that are involved, its details are still unknown.
Sierra Club executive director Michael Brune warned the TPP “would empower big polluters to challenge climate and environmental safeguards in private trade courts and would expand trade in unsafe fossil fuels that would increase fracking and imperil our climate”.
In one of his statements, the US President said, “When more than 95 percent of our potential customers live outside our borders, we can’t let countries like China write the rules of the global economy”.
“Second, economic momentum in the right direction is important”.
“Now, we’ve seen how bilateral trade benefits both sides”.
He was effusive about the positive effects the TPP would usher in. The companies didn’t respond to requests for comment on the TPP agreement.
“TPP represents 18,000 tax cuts”, he said Monday.
A number of business organizations in Europe said the Trans-Pacific Partnership or TPP is also expected to encourage discussions between the European Union and Japan.
Gerard added that workers have fought to get trade rules enforced.
Advertisement
A few observers – me included – dared to hope when Canada joined the TPP talks that pressure from genuine free traders like New Zealand would force an end to supply management.
