SYDNEY: Australia said on Tuesday it hoped to recast the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) without the US and opened the door for China to sign up after President Donald Trump ditched the trade pact. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said his government was in “active discussions” with other TPP countries, including his Japanese, New Zealand and Singaporean counterparts, on how to salvage the agreement. “There is also the opportunity for the TPP to proceed without the United States,” he added. Trade Minister Steven Ciobo said Australia, Canada, Mexico and others had canvassed the concept of a “TPP 12 minus one” – the pact without the US – at a World Trade Organization ministerial meeting in Davos. Trump said he would pursue bilateral arrangements with the TPP signatories to find terms more favourable to the US.

Source: Manila Times January 24, 2017 16:00 UTC