The Ministry of Trade and Industry (“MTI“) has issued a public consultation to obtain feedback on the General Review of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (“CPTPP“), in advance of a proposed General Review of the CPTPP.
By way of background, the CPTPP is a comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (“FTA“) between Singapore, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru and Vietnam (collectively, “Members“).
The CPTPP is a vehicle for promoting free trade and economic integration in the Asia-Pacific region and beyond. It contains market access commitments in the areas of goods, services and government procurement, investment rules and rules in areas such as e-commerce and intellectual property. For Singapore, the CPTPP complements Singapore’s extensive network of FTAs and eliminates tariffs for 94% of Singapore’s exports to CPTPP markets.
Key objectives of the General Review include (i) identifying ways to assist traders and investors make the best use of the CPTPP and increase the use of the CPTPP, (ii) identifying provisions within the CPTPP that require revision or updating and whether any new provisions are required, and (iii) ensuring that the CPTPP remains of the highest possible standard.
The Terms of Reference for Conducting the General Review of the CPTPP highlights that the scope of the General Review will consider, among others, how the CPTPP can:
(a) continue to promote trade and investment for economic growth and social benefits for workers, businesses, consumers and promote sustainable growth;
(b) strengthen the links between trade, the CPTPP, and the changing global environmental issues including climate change and biodiversity loss;
(c) uphold labour rights, improve working conditions and living standards, strengthen cooperation and capacity on labour issues;
(d) address the challenges posed by market-distorting practices;
(e) further consider Members’ interests in the context of the CPTPP’s Investor-State Dispute Settlement mechanism;
(f) complement the rules based multilateral trading system, with the World Trade Organisation (WTO) at its core, including as a means for responding to economic coercion; and
(g) demonstrate leadership on emerging issues in areas such as the digital and green economy.
Any proposed changes to the CPTPP resulting from the General Review will require the agreement of all Members that the changes will collectively benefit all Members whilst still ensuring that the CPTPP remains the “gold standard” for trade agreements.
Feedback can be submitted via the form at this link. The consultation period runs till 31 May 2024.
Click on the following links for more information:
Available on the MTI website at www.mti.gov.sg:
- Public Consultation on the General Review of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP)
- Annex A – Terms of Reference for Conducting the General Review of the CPTPP
Available on the Enterprise SG website at www.enterprisesg.gov.sg:
