Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper at a press conference on the TPP in Ottawa on October 5 (Photo: Reuters/VNA)
The completion of the historic Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement on October 5 has received positive response from many countries.
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said in a speech in Ottawa immediately after the TPP’s signing that all industries and localities of Canada will benefit from the deal, which he described as the biggest trade agreement in history.
The PM also pledged compensation worth 4.3 billion CAD (3.3 billion USD) for farmers who will be affected by the TPP, which requires that Canada opens its market for dairy, egg, chicken, beef, pork, lamb, seafood, log and industrial goods within five years from the time the deal begins to take effect.
The PM affirmed that his Conservative Party will push forward with the implementation of the TPP if they win in the upcoming elections.
The same day, the opposition Liberal Party of Canada, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, the Canadian Council of Chief Executives and many big economic groups in Canada also welcomed the completion of the TPP.
Blackberry CEO John Chen said the TPP will remove trade barriers and allow Canadian businesses to compete based on product and service quality.
The same day, Mexican Economic Secretary Guajardo Villarreal said the TPP will open up new business opportunities for Mexico in sectors related to the six Asian-Pacific markets which are Australia, Brunei, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore and Vietnam, which are predicted to enjoy high economic growth in the next 25 years.
He also said the deal will be a model for later trade agreements, adding that Mexico has been able to achieve a balance between national interests and the benefits of so-called sensitive sectors such as automobile and parts, garment and textile and agricultural products.
With the TPP, Mexico will strengthen its foothold in Chile and Peru, its two priority trade partners in Latin America, while expanding its trade ties with Japan, the minister said, citing the ministry’s figures that the 11 other TPP partners account for 72 percent of Mexico’s trade and 55 percent of foreign direct investment flow into the country.
Chilean Foreign Minister Heraldo Muñoz also said Chile will benefit from the TPP.
Speaking from Valparaíso City, the minister hailed the TPP as a global trade deal, which surpasses the Doha negotiation.
He, however, noted that the deal will have to go through the parliament, with one of the most thorny issues being Chile’s biological and pharmaceutical products.
The TPP brings together 12 countries, which are Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the US and Vietnam.
After the signing, the document must receive approval from member countries’ governments and parliaments before taking effect.
Once realized, the TPP will become a free trade region of 800-million people, accounting for 30 percent of global trade and about 40 percent of the world’s economy.-VNA
