Countries push ahead with TPP negotiations in Australia
(VOVWORLD) - Senior officials from the remaining 11 countries involved in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) are meeting in Australia until Wednesday to discuss measures to bring the agreement into effect as soon as possible.
 Australian Trade Minister Steven Ciobo (Photo: Bloomberg) |
In a statement released on Monday, Australian Trade Minister Steven Ciobo said he had been engaging regularly with his TPP ministerial counterparts and realizes that each nation has a desire to reach a deal. The TPP would link the 11 countries, including four of the world’s top 20 economies, with combined gross domestic product (GDP) of about 9.8 trillion USD. It would result in 19 new free trade agreements coming into force.
TPP countries are scheduled to discuss the early enforcement of the partnership at the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting in Vietnam in November.