Britain to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP)
The United Kingdom has indeed struck a trade deal with 11 countries in the Asia-Pacific region, including Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam, to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).
The UK government has described this deal as the country’s biggest free trade agreement since Brexit and has said that it will create new opportunities for British businesses and deepen economic ties across the Indo-Pacific region.
The deal covers a range of areas, including trade in goods and services, investment, intellectual property, digital trade, and the environment. The deal includes strong protections for British farmers, including tariff rate quotas on key agricultural products,and that it will support high standards in areas such as labour and the environment.
The historic agreement follows two years of intense negotiations by the Department for Business and Trade and puts the UK at the heart of a dynamic group of economies, as the first European member and first new member since CPTPP was created. We would not have been able to join as a member of the EU, demonstrating how the UK is seizing the opportunities of our new post-Brexit trade freedoms to drive jobs and growth across the country.
The bloc is home to more 500 million people and will be worth 15% of global GDP once the UK joins. It is estimated that joining will boost the UK economy by £1.8 billion in the long run, with wages also forecast to rise by £800 million compared to 2019 levels.
Being part of CPTPP will support jobs and economic growth across the country, with every nation and region expected to benefit. More than 99 percent of UK goods exports to CPTPP countries will now be eligible for zero tariffs, including key UK exports such as cheese, cars, chocolate, machinery, gin and whisky.
Total UK exports to CPTPP countries were already worth £60.5 billion in the 12 months to the end of September 2022 and are set to grow under CPTPP. Our leading services industry will also benefit from reduced red tape and greater access to growing Pacific markets with an appetite for high-quality UK products and services.
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