Japanese, Canadian Market Access Intransigence Threatens TPP Potential, Says TPP Coalition
Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) participant nations Japan and Canada may be unwilling to accept comprehensive market access liberalization in a final trade pact, warned more than 40 U.S. Business Coalition for TPP members in a Feb. 20 letter to U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman. “Both countries seem intent on preserving the status quo for their most protected sectors,” said the letter. “Not only would the tariff barriers that Japan seeks to maintain be unprecedented, but they are in the very sectors that have the greatest potential for future trade growth between the United States and Japan.” Froman is due to attend the next TPP ministerial in Singapore from Feb. 22-25.
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Japanese tariff and non-tariff barriers on autos have emerged as a significant area of contention. Froman said recently. Japan may be ousted from the negotiations if they do not make further concessions (see 14021902). The U.S. also continues to negotiate over rice and other Japanese agriculture (see 13111516). The most politically sensitive Canadian products include dairy and beef, according to the Peterson Institute of International Economics (here). Japanese and Canadian intransigence on politically sensitive sectors threaten the TPP status as a “transformative trade agreement” that may become “the magnet for future global trade liberalization,” the letter said.
Email ITTNews@warren-news.com for a copy of the letter.