The sixth round of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) talks concluded in Singapore on April 1, making good progress, reported Channel NewsAsia.
The talks, which were engaged by more than 400 negotiators from Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Australia, Peru, Singapore, the US and Vietnam, advanced trade issues including tax competitiveness and supply chain integration.
Channel NewsAsia quoted chief negotiators as saying the negotiators drafted an array of agreements ranging from trade policies to legal services.
However, some issues, including intellectual property rights, government subsidy for agriculture, e-commerce and environmental matters, have yet to conclude.
The first round of the TPP negotiations took place in Melbourne , Australia , in early 2010, with the aim of expanding the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) among New Zealand , Brunei , Chile and Singapore to a trans-Pacific FTA.
The next rounds of the TPP talks will be held in Vietnam in June, in the US in September and in Peru in October with the aim to reach a final agreement at the Summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in the US in November.
The nine countries involving in the TPP negotiations boast a combined GDP of 16 trillion USD with a market of 472 million people. The ongoing agreement is considered one of the most ambitious economic integration pacts in the region and the first deal to connect the Eastern and Western coasts of the Pacific./.
The talks, which were engaged by more than 400 negotiators from Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Australia, Peru, Singapore, the US and Vietnam, advanced trade issues including tax competitiveness and supply chain integration.
Channel NewsAsia quoted chief negotiators as saying the negotiators drafted an array of agreements ranging from trade policies to legal services.
However, some issues, including intellectual property rights, government subsidy for agriculture, e-commerce and environmental matters, have yet to conclude.
The first round of the TPP negotiations took place in Melbourne , Australia , in early 2010, with the aim of expanding the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) among New Zealand , Brunei , Chile and Singapore to a trans-Pacific FTA.
The next rounds of the TPP talks will be held in Vietnam in June, in the US in September and in Peru in October with the aim to reach a final agreement at the Summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in the US in November.
The nine countries involving in the TPP negotiations boast a combined GDP of 16 trillion USD with a market of 472 million people. The ongoing agreement is considered one of the most ambitious economic integration pacts in the region and the first deal to connect the Eastern and Western coasts of the Pacific./.
