National economy UK joins transpacific free trade agreement
The UK officially joined the CPTPP transpacific free trade agreement on Sunday. This makes the UK the first new member and the first European member since it was founded in 2018.
15.12.2024, 04:05
SDA
Canada, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam were already members of the free trade zone.
According to the British government, the alliance now covers more than 500 million people and 15 percent of global economic output after the UK joined. Many goods produced in the UK will no longer be subject to customs duties when exported to CPTPP countries - for example cars, chocolate and whisky.
CPTPP is the largest trade agreement that the UK has joined since leaving the EU. In recent years, Brexit supporters have repeatedly stated that London could more easily conclude free trade agreements with fast-growing countries outside of the EU. However, critics believe that the resulting advantages will hardly be able to compensate for the economic disadvantages caused by Brexit.
Counterweight to China
The CPTPP agreement came about after the USA withdrew from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade agreement in 2017 under then President Donald Trump. The eleven remaining members then renegotiated the agreement and finally signed a reduced version called the CPTPP in 2018. It is seen as an economic counterweight to China's growing influence in the region, although China has now also applied to join.
The UK had been negotiating its accession since February 2021. In 2023, the then Trade Minister Kemi Badenoch signed the accession protocol. Accession was formally completed on Sunday.
