The Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) will enter into force in December. The agreement was recently ratified by Australia, the sixth to approve it, meeting the threshold to bring it into force.
CPTPP includes reduction in tariff and non-tariff barriers among members with high standards on human rights, labor and environment. CPTPP covers economies representing around 16 per cent of global economic output and 500 million people.
New Zealand trade minister Mr David Parker expressed optimism about other participating members ratifying the agreement over the coming months, according to news wires.
Signed earlier this year, the CPTPP is the successor to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) after the United States withdrew in January 2017 after Donald Trump became president. The eleven remaining members—Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam—agreed to proceed with a new round of negotiations.
Japan, the second largest economy in the original TPP, led the negotiating efforts.
Japan, Canada, Mexico, Singapore and New Zealand have already ratified the agreement.
Japanese Prime Minister Mr Shinzo Abe earlier this month expressed interest in seeing the United Kingdom joining the CPTPP after it departs the European Union.
Joining CPTPP will help create 17,000-27,000 jobs each year for Vietnamese workers from 2020.
According to Mr Nguyen Van Binh, deputy head of the department of legislation under the Vietnamese ministry of labor, invalids and social affairs, to ensure compliance with labor commitments, Vietnam is in the process of amending its labor laws to make them compatible with CPTPP.
