China Pushes for Entry Into CPTPP Trade Deal
China has reached out to several members of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership in the hopes of joining the trade agreement that was originally created to exclude it, Bloomberg reported May 17. Officials from Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand and possibly others have had talks with the Chinese about the agreement initiated by the U.S. to balance China's growing power. President Donald Trump pulled out of the CPTPP in 2017; Japan subsequently took over and concluded negotiations the following year. China would be the largest economy in the pact if it were to join but faces an uphill battle as views of China have become increasingly negative in CPTPP member nations, the report noted.
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Other barriers to China's entry include questions over whether it could comply with the deal's requirements, especially on labor, procurement, state-owned enterprises, subsidies, e-commerce and cross-border data transfer. Member nations must consent to the ascension of any new members, and the current signatories have said there won't be any concessions for new members, Bloomberg reported. It said that Japan, which currently has the largest economy of CPTPP members, has “little appetite” for the Chinese to join the agreement. China also recently led another regional trade deal, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership.