The Philippines and 14 other countries signed on Sunday a mega free trade deal, which is expected to improve the level of market access among participating countries. The agreement to lower tariffs and open up the services trade within the bloc does not include the United States and is viewed as a Chinese-led alternative to a now-defunct Washington trade initiative. Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez joined the Trade ministers of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam and its five trading partners — Australia, China, Japan, Korea, and New Zealand — in signing the RCEP agreement. “As a historic free trade deal, RCEP has been cleared by the National Economic and Development Authority Board Cabinet Committee on Trade and Related Matters with the assistance of the agencies involved in the negotiations,” he added. Even without India, the deal covers 2.1 billion people, with RCEP’s members accounting for around 30 percent of global GDP.

Source: Manila Times November 15, 2020 16:30 UTC