Trade ministers from the US and Asia-Pacific region have reached a deal on the Trans-Pacific Partnership, bringing the 5-year-long negotiations to an end.
(RT) -- Trade ministers from the US and Asia-Pacific region have reached a deal on the Pacific trade pact that is intended to cut trade barriers and establish common standards for 12 countries. This is the largest trade pact in 20 years and has been a long-term goal of the Obama administration.
The bloc is headed by the US and includes Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement covers 40 percent of the world’s economy. Negotiations have been going on for five years.
TPP objectives, according to United States Trade Representative (USTR):
© United States Trade Representative (USTR)
The US visible exports to TPP countries totaled $727 billion in 2014, which is 45 percent of America’s exported goods, says the organization website.
