Officials Conclude 18th Round of TPP Negotiations, Welcome Japan’s Entry
Officials reported strong progress during the 18th round of Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations, which concluded July 25, said a press release from the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR). Officials also welcomed Japan, which entered the negotiations as the 12th participating country just days before on July 23. With Japan’s entry, USTR said that TPP countries now account for “nearly 40 percent of global GDP and about one-third of all world trade.”
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USTR said negotiating groups covering areas like market access, rules of origin, technical barriers to trade and transparency reached agreement on “a wide range of technical issues in the legal texts of these chapters, which set the rules that govern the conduct of their trade and investment relations" in the 18th round. The groups also found “common ground” on issues that helped them make progress in the negotiating groups that cover intellectual property, competition and environment, USTR said. Each group also developed a detailed plan for concluding remaining issues and completing all their work, said the press release.
Negotiators agreed on the next steps in an overall plan to create “ambitious” packages that will “provide access to their respective markets for industrial, agricultural and textile and apparel products, services and investment, and government procurement." Each group planned to achieve such market access outcomes within the timeframe agreed upon by TPP leaders. USTR Mike Froman and other TPP ministers plan to meet regularly in the weeks ahead of the next round to find solutions to remaining issues, guide the work of negotiators, and keep the negotiations moving “expeditiously toward a high-standard outcome,” USTR said. The 19th round will be Aug. 22 to Aug. 30 in Brunei.