Following five years of negotiations, 12 countries announced on October 5, 2015, that they had reached an agreement on the US-led Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a sweeping trade pact that is expected to set standards for 40 percent of the world's economy.
The countries include Brunei, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Chile, Mexico, Peru and the United States. Excluded from that list is China, the largest economy in Asia and the second largest in the world. The country is not likely to sign up to the TPP anytime soon because of Beijing's inability to meet the membership rules that set standards on labour rights, environmental protection commitments, intellectual property rights protection, currency management, Internet governance and fair competition policies in relation to state-owned enterprises. Read more
The countries include Brunei, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Chile, Mexico, Peru and the United States. Excluded from that list is China, the largest economy in Asia and the second largest in the world. The country is not likely to sign up to the TPP anytime soon because of Beijing's inability to meet the membership rules that set standards on labour rights, environmental protection commitments, intellectual property rights protection, currency management, Internet governance and fair competition policies in relation to state-owned enterprises. Read more
