TPPA, no way – for now

as close as we’ve ever been to a free trade deal – tapping into a burgeoning economy of 1.2 billion people.

New Zealand relies on overseas trade and we should turn our attention to India, especially after the shock United States presidential result this week.

Whichever way the election over there went, it seemed the much-maligned, confusing and controversial Trans-pacific Partnership Agreement was dead in the water anyway.

The 12-nation agreement that includes heavyweights Australia, the US, Malaysia and Mexico always faced tough hurdles to ratification in all countries.

Early backer Hillary Clinton did a 180-degree turn to oppose it, while among election victor Donald Trump’s hodge-podge of policy-related funk is a worrying protectionist streak that rates the TPP as highly as a ‘‘bad hombre’’.

The days of the US leading the way on free trade look over, as does New Zealand’s immediate prospects of finding an in through the country’s economic wall.

A long-time holy grail for Kiwi administrations, a free trade deal with the US in any form is just not an option under a Trump-led presidency and the TPP is unlikely to slip through Congress before he takes office on January 20.

Key has optimistically put some store in TPP re-negotiations at some vague date in the future. Forget it, the deal is off. Trump’s plans to Make America Great Again don’t involve us.

Even if New Zealand won a spot around the White House negotiating table, it’s highly unlikely we’d come away with an agreement that will benefit this country.

The chants of protesters – ‘‘TPPA – no way’’ – proved prescient. There’s also a delicious irony that a man surely loathed by the eclectic mix of anti-tpp types is the one to kill it off.

New Zealand needs to move on and focus on India, Malaysia and even emerging South American economic powerhouses. It seems we’re making progress toward a deal with Arab states too.

Good. For now, the US should sit on our free trade backburner.