How new TPP deal could benefit Canada: report

The Comprehensive Progressive Agreement for Trans‑Pacific Partnership (CPTPP)—the new version of the TPP that Canada signed on March 8—is smaller than it used to be but just as ambitious, says Desjardins in a Friday report.

Read: Canada agrees to revised trade deal without the U.S.

The 11 members of the CPTPP (which no longer includes the U.S.) started renegotiating the trade deal last year, came to an agreement at the end of January 2018 and signed the deal last week.

Desjardins, in its report, says the text of the agreement is essentially the same as the 2016 version, “with the exception of eliminated clauses on intellectual property and the dispute resolution mechanism.”

There’s also the possibility that the deal could be expanded if other countries come on board. “Among others, the United States and United Kingdom recently showed a potential interest in signing on,” the report says.

Despite the signing of the agreement, there is more work to be done: the deal will only come into effect when at least six countries have ratified it, which could take several months, the report says. But, once that process is completed, “the agreement will comprise about 6.7% of the world’s population, and 13.4% of its GDP.”

For Canada, the CPTPP offer new opportunities. Says the report: “Brunei, Singapore, New Zealand, Australia, Malaysia, Vietnam and Japan represent new trade agreements for Canada, and offer the biggest potential gains.”

Prior to the new agreement, only 5% of domestic goods and services moved between Canada and the CPTPP zone, “while only 11% of its imports came from CPTPP nations in 2016, for $31.5B and $73.5B respectively,” says Desjardins.

Japan, the world’s fourth-largest economy, “was the main destination for these exports,” the report adds.

The full list of CPTPP members includes Canada, New Zealand, Japan, Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Brunei, Mexico, Chile and Peru.

For more, read the full report.

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