Officials from eight nations including the US began talks on a trans-Pacific trade deal yesterday in a move Australia said could add momentum to stalled WTO talks.
US President Barack Obama, who aims to double US exports in five years, hopes to shore up the US economic position in Asia by joining an expanded Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) pact, which he says will also create much needed jobs in the US.
The US, Australia, Peru and Vietnam are seeking to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which already includes Chile, Singapore, New Zealand and Brunei.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership aims to push members of broader the APEC groups of countries toward a long-term goal of an Asia-Pacific free-trade zone.
“This is a very significant potential trade negotiation. It has the basis for being the bridge to a free trade area for the Asia-Pacific,” Australian Trade Minister Simon Crean said yesterday, adding the talks added momentum to the Doha WTO round.
The eight countries in talks cover 470 million people with a combined GDP of US$16 trillion. The first of four rounds of talks set for this year will cover tariffs and non-tariff trade barriers, e-commerce, services and intellectual property rights.
Obama, facing a revolt among Democrats who believe past trade agreements cost millions of US manufacturing jobs, says the TPP, his first trade initiative, will offer stronger protection for US workers and the environment than previous pacts.
The US priorities in the TPP include promoting clean energy and other emerging economic sectors, gaining new exports for its manufacturers, farmers and service providers and boosting protections for US intellectual property rights.
An East Asia free-trade area without the US could cost US companies at least US$25 billion in annual exports, or about 200,000 high-paying jobs, the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington said.
Obama wants to create 2 million new jobs by deepening US engagement with major emerging markets such as China, India, Brazil and the Asia-Pacific.
Australia is also negotiating free-trade agreements with China and Japan and began a new round of talks yesterday with South Korea.
Crean said despite these negotiations, a successful outcome to the Doha round of global trade talks was still the best way to free up world trade.
“I certainly haven’t given up on Doha. Doha in many ways still holds the best and quickest approach to trade liberalization in the short term, if we can find the political will,” he said. “Doha will give that stimulus, without impact on respective budgets.”
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