US President-elect Trump has promised to abandon the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal as soon as he takes office. Trump has promised to leave the TPP, which took the Obama administration seven years to negotiate, and instead "negotiate fair bilateral trade deals that bring jobs and industry back on to American shores."
The TPP is an agreement between 12 nations reached in October, 2015. The TPP sets forth a comprehensive trade framework covering goods and services, cross-border investments, intellectual property, the environment and many other topics of critical importance to companies engaged in international trade. The TPP aims to deepen economic ties between the member nations, cut tariffs and foster trade to boost economic growth.
The member nations are the US, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam.
The text of the TPP still has to be signed and then ratified by all 12 signatories and then implemented by the individual nations' legislatures. To take effect, the deal has to be ratified by February 2018 by at least six countries that account for 85% of the group's economic output. This means that Japan and the US will need to be on board.
Earlier this month the TPP cleared its main hurdle in Japan's parliament, but approval by the US is much less certain. It is likely that after the transition from President Obama to President-elect Trump, the US will no longer continue to work toward implementing the TPP.
Click here to learn more about the TPP.
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