11 countries to launch TPP deal without USA and PH

CANBERRA, Australia – A trade pact between 11 Pacific Rim nations will come into force this year after Australia became the sixth country to ratify it, nearly two years after President Trump withdrew the US from talks.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, agreed in March, is the largest free-trade agreement completed in Asia, and comes at a time of rising trade tensions between the US and China.

The deal's backers say it may be the most important trade agreement reached in more than two decades, modernizing agreements to reflect the rise of digital trade, services and copyright in a fast-growing region that includes Japan and longtime US allies.

Mr. Trump last year pulled the US out of the original negotiation in one of his first acts as president, saying it would disadvantage US workers. The agreement was backed by the Obama administration and many congressional Republicans, but died in the 2016 election season.

The 11 remaining nations that went on to agree to a revised deal–Japan, Canada, Mexico, Australia, Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam–pledged to lower barriers to trade of goods and services, as well as protecting intellectual property rights in a region of almost 500 million people accounting for about 13% of global GDP. The Philippines opted not to join.

New Zealand's Trade Minister David Parker, whose country is coordinating the process, said the trade deal would start delivering tariff cuts as soon as December. It will remove tariffs on an estimated 95% of goods traded between member countries, which have a combined GDP of some $10 trillion.

Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, Peru and Vietnam have yet to ratify the deal. But Australia's approval–the sixth after Canada, Singapore, New Zealand, Japan and Mexico–provided the necessary trigger for two rounds of tariff reductions starting December 30 and another early next year.

The deal will also phase out duties on sensitive products such as agricultural imports in countries including Japan and Mexico. Many tariffs will fall to zero on the first day, while agricultural products will become duty free within three to seven years.

"I expect other signatories will come on board after the (deal) enters into force, as many are working hard to progress their applicable domestic procedures," said Mr. Parker in a statement Wednesday.

Longtime US allies, including Japan, have pushed the deal as a way to counter Chinese economic influence in the region. (WSJ)