https://www.scmp.com/rss/510832/feed The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) was originally known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership. It was spearheaded by the United States under the Obama administration but former US president Donald Trump pulled out of the pact in his first days in office in 2017. It was eventually signed in March 2018 by 11 countries: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam, and represents a market of about half... en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Wang Huiyao Wang Huiyao For much of the post-war era, the architecture of global governance rested on the simple assumption that the United States would support the systems it largely designed and uphold the rules it helped to create. The first Trump administration was no isolated incident. Now, from the vantage point of 2026, amid the US-Israel attack on Iran and the subsequent closing of the Strait of Hormuz, it is quite clear that there is little sign of an appetite in Washington for the US to once again safeguard... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3346975/middle-powers-are-taking-mantle-multilateral-leadership?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3346975/middle-powers-are-taking-mantle-multilateral-leadership?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 25 Mar 2026 12:30:07 +0000 Wang Huiyao Wang Huiyao The global order has outgrown itself. The 2026 Munich Security Report describes this moment as a period of “wrecking-ball politics”, in which the post-war order constructed in 1945 is “under destruction”. However, that order was designed for a world shaped by bipolar rivalry and later sustained by American predominance. Today’s global system looks very different: economically diffuse, environmentally constrained and politically fragmented but deeply interconnected by both trade and... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3343875/its-time-global-governance-reflect-new-realities?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3343875/its-time-global-governance-reflect-new-realities?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Feb 2026 21:30:09 +0000 Syed Munir Khasru Syed Munir Khasru Today, double-digit tariffs imposed by the United States are the new baseline. Breaking decades of low single digits norms, the US rolled out a “reciprocal tariff” framework in April 2025, setting a 10 per cent baseline and layering on higher rates for specific countries. Embedded in the US’ national security strategy, this reorientation leaves little scope for a full rollback and turns global trade into a test of power: of whether World Trade Organization (WTO) rules still bind or leverage now... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3341496/trumps-tariffs-reveal-hidden-fault-lines-global-trade?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3341496/trumps-tariffs-reveal-hidden-fault-lines-global-trade?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 29 Jan 2026 21:30:09 +0000 David Lammy David Lammy Last year, just three weeks into my new job, I visited Laos for the Asean Foreign Ministers’ Meeting. I did so with a clear mission: to reconnect the United Kingdom with the Indo-Pacific. I said then that I would be back. And I’ve kept that promise. I’ve just completed my fifth visit to the region, covering 10 countries – from India to Indonesia, Samoa to Singapore. We are already seeing real achievements from this investment. Our free-trade agreement with India – now signed. Our membership of... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3317917/britain-clear-mission-reconnect-asia-pacific?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3317917/britain-clear-mission-reconnect-asia-pacific?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 13 Jul 2025 09:30:08 +0000 Finbarr Bermingham Finbarr Bermingham For months since the return of US President Donald Trump, there has been a roaring trade in papers and speeches about how to make Europe a truly independent geopolitical player. The term “strategic autonomy”, championed by the French government during Trump’s first term, is back in vogue. But the independence movement was on the ropes this week, when a series of summits thrust Europe’s weakness on global affairs into the spotlight ahead of a bout of engagement with China. On Monday, a meeting of... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3316259/after-nato-chaos-irrelevant-europe-shambles-towards-china-summit?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3316259/after-nato-chaos-irrelevant-europe-shambles-towards-china-summit?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 29 Jun 2025 08:00:12 +0000 Robert Delaney Robert Delaney Major economies are beginning to work around the United States as Washington breaks away from the global trading rules that it established, witnesses told lawmakers on Wednesday, in a hearing called to assess how to restructure the US government to align economic and foreign policy goals. Witnesses and lawmakers in the hearing organised by the House East Asia and Pacific subcommittee – chaired by Young Kim, a California Republican – generally agreed that a policy of closer economic engagement... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3310387/us-lawmakers-mull-state-department-shake-trade-partners-seek-new-alliances?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3310387/us-lawmakers-mull-state-department-shake-trade-partners-seek-new-alliances?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 15 May 2025 04:18:02 +0000 Stephen Olson Stephen Olson US President Donald Trump has always appeared sincere in his belief that “trade wars are good, and easy to win”, but his recent policy swerves and mood-music shifts suggest he is coming to realise he has overplayed his hand in waging a trade war against the world. Trade partners from Beijing to Brussels are relishing the sight of Trump scrambling to back off from his preposterous “reciprocal” tariffs, while painting a rosy picture of the prospect of “fair” trade deals and seeming to eschew his... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3309089/picking-global-fight-may-not-be-best-strategy-trump-finding-out?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3309089/picking-global-fight-may-not-be-best-strategy-trump-finding-out?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 06 May 2025 21:30:08 +0000 During his first term in office, US President Donald Trump swiftly moved to pull the United States out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership – an ambitious free trade agreement aimed at cementing America’s position in the Asia-Pacific region. Now, the reinstated US leader may be opening the door to China to join the successor to that agreement, as countries around the world seek to counter his sweeping reciprocal tariff regime, analysts said. Trump shocked the world by placing steep new duties on... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3305527/trumps-liberation-day-opening-door-china-join-cptpp?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3305527/trumps-liberation-day-opening-door-china-join-cptpp?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 08 Apr 2025 04:10:23 +0000 Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi was in Tokyo recently for the 11th China-Japan-South Korea Trilateral Foreign Ministers’ Meeting – the first since November 2023. During the visit, he also co-chaired the Sixth China-Japan High-Level Economic Dialogue with Japan’s Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya. The results were promising: 20 consensus points emerged from the economic dialogue, spanning trade to green development, alongside a commitment to hold a trilateral summit by the end of the year. Just... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3304376/broken-world-china-japan-korea-cooperation-asias-backbone?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3304376/broken-world-china-japan-korea-cooperation-asias-backbone?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 31 Mar 2025 21:30:07 +0000 Speaking at a think tank event in New Delhi last week, New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon acknowledged that “geopolitical calculations are being totally upended”. Amid US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin having direct peace talks over the Ukraine war, the conflict in Gaza and the looming threat of a global trade war, Luxon’s remarks come at a pivotal moment. Global power dynamics are rapidly shifting, and the Indo-Pacific could soon find itself at the... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3303579/trumps-policy-u-turn-pushing-indo-pacific-nations-cooperate?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3303579/trumps-policy-u-turn-pushing-indo-pacific-nations-cooperate?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 24 Mar 2025 21:30:07 +0000 China and New Zealand should become partners of mutual trust and address some specific differences through constructive dialogue, Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his counterpart Winston Peters at a meeting in Beijing on Wednesday. “The two sides should maintain a correct understanding of each other … and further develop friendly cooperation and become partners who trust and support each other’s achievements,” Wang said, according to a Chinese foreign ministry readout. “For some specific... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3300336/new-zealand-fm-meets-chinas-wang-yi-beijing-raises-pla-live-fire-drills?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3300336/new-zealand-fm-meets-chinas-wang-yi-beijing-raises-pla-live-fire-drills?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 27 Feb 2025 07:00:33 +0000 Britain has officially become the 12th economy to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) as part of its efforts to build post-Brexit relations, but how much will it boost the UK economy? The CPTPP, which also includes Australia, Canada and Japan, is the successor to the Trans-Pacific Partnership, cobbled together after the US withdrew from the pact in 2017. Britain is the first non-founding member and the first European country to join the free... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3292775/after-britain-will-china-be-next-join-cptpp-free-trade-pact?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3292775/after-britain-will-china-be-next-join-cptpp-free-trade-pact?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 31 Dec 2024 08:30:08 +0000 Britain officially became the 12th member of a trans-Pacific trade pact which includes Japan, Australia, and Canada on Sunday as it seeks to deepen ties in the region and build its global trade links after leaving the European Union. Britain announced last year it would join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) in its biggest trade deal since Brexit. The accession means Britain will be able to apply CPTPP trade rules and lower tariffs with eight of... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/3290844/britain-joins-trans-pacific-pact-biggest-post-brexit-trade-deal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/3290844/britain-joins-trans-pacific-pact-biggest-post-brexit-trade-deal?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Dec 2024 02:08:22 +0000 Manila should strengthen coordination with Southeast Asian nations on its policy towards China, a retired Philippine naval officer said on Monday, as engagement with Washington alone risks potential stronger resistance by Beijing over the contested South China Sea. “I believe that we made some mistakes … we could have engaged at least most of the Asean member states that are surrounding the South China Sea more effectively [and] we could have consulted them [about] our action because they do not... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3289059/help-asean-nations-counter-china-unlikely-ex-philippine-navy-officer?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3289059/help-asean-nations-counter-china-unlikely-ex-philippine-navy-officer?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Dec 2024 22:08:09 +0000 US President Joe Biden touted his economic and foreign policies on the opening night of the Democratic National Convention on Monday in a speech that symbolised the passing of his authority to Vice-President Kamala Harris and sought to draw a sharp contrast with her Republican opponent, Donald Trump. Focusing on a need to create greater opportunities for the American middle class through policies that support unionised manufacturing jobs and spur growth “from the bottom up and the middle out”,... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3275155/joe-biden-touts-policies-us-middle-class-says-chinese-economic-dominance-not-assured?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3275155/joe-biden-touts-policies-us-middle-class-says-chinese-economic-dominance-not-assured?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 20 Aug 2024 06:40:53 +0000 In a US presidential election season defined by sharp differences over abortion, gun control, voting rights and other social issues, trade policy has so far got short shrift. Presumptive Democratic nominee Vice-President Kamala Harris has spent most of the time since President Joe Biden opted out of the race highlighting the controversial comments and positions of Republican nominee Donald Trump and his running mate J.D. Vance, nearly all of them involving culture-war issues like reproductive... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3274239/us-trade-asia-flourishes-resistance-trans-pacific-bloc-holds-firm?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3274239/us-trade-asia-flourishes-resistance-trans-pacific-bloc-holds-firm?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 12 Aug 2024 16:00:19 +0000 Is Europe shifting politically right or left, and how far will the pendulum swing towards extremism in either case? Is the United States headed for a political gridlock – or even civil war? These are serious questions in the light of recent developments on both continents. An even bigger question, however, is how much the world cares, if any more, about the irresponsible antics of these so-called great powers, or whether it is ready to cry a plague on both their houses and look elsewhere for... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3270117/world-exasperated-west-may-well-seek-leadership-elsewhere?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3270117/world-exasperated-west-may-well-seek-leadership-elsewhere?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 13 Jul 2024 08:30:09 +0000 Beijing and Hanoi should further strengthen cooperation while properly handling their disputes in the South China Sea, President Xi Jinping told Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on Wednesday. “The two sides should properly handle our maritime issues, accelerate joint maritime development and together maintain regional peace and stability,” Xi said to Chinh at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People. Their meeting followed on Xi’s visit with Hanoi’s leadership last December and took place as... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3268179/china-and-vietnam-must-build-stronger-ties-shared-destiny-xi-jinping-tells-counterpart?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3268179/china-and-vietnam-must-build-stronger-ties-shared-destiny-xi-jinping-tells-counterpart?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 26 Jun 2024 17:15:14 +0000 The United States should join the Asia-Pacific trade bloc which former president Donald Trump left as well as shift its naval and air forces from Europe to the Indo-Pacific, two prominent Washington analysts recommend in a new book that urges a renewed “pivot to Asia”. Robert Blackwill, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, and Richard Fontaine, the president of the Centre for a New American Security, contend that despite a strategic American reorientation to the region in 2011,... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3266989/us-urged-join-asia-pacific-trade-group-and-shift-its-european-forces-indo-pacific?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3266989/us-urged-join-asia-pacific-trade-group-and-shift-its-european-forces-indo-pacific?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 17 Jun 2024 18:46:39 +0000 In a step towards freer cross-border data flows and to address the concerns of foreign businesses, Shanghai inaugurated a major data flow service centre in the Lingang free-trade zone on Sunday, with pledges to adopt internationally recognised standards. The centre will seek data cooperation agreements with Singapore and New Zealand, as well as countries involved in Brics economic cooperation bloc and Beijing’s signature Belt and Road Initiative, with applications including electronic invoices... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3258242/shanghais-data-flow-centre-walks-talk-promises-international-standards-chinas-foreign-firms-need?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3258242/shanghais-data-flow-centre-walks-talk-promises-international-standards-chinas-foreign-firms-need?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 08 Apr 2024 13:27:47 +0000 Back in 2021, amid a raging pandemic, the US National Intelligence Council warned of a more contested world in its Global Trends 2040 report. It highlighted the themes of global challenges, fragmentation, disequilibrium, contestation and adaptation. Post-Covid, a world that has experienced vaccine and digital divides between the West and rest does appear to be fragmenting into blocs reinforced by nationalism and polarisation and which feature deepening inequalities, failed international... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/world/article/3252899/trade-barriers-go-west-rest-are-reglobalising?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/world/article/3252899/trade-barriers-go-west-rest-are-reglobalising?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 23 Feb 2024 07:30:11 +0000 Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Hanoi last week underpinned Vietnam’s growing global profile, with major powers courting the Southeast Asian country. Vietnam recently upgraded its ties with the United States and Japan to “strategic comprehensive partnerships”. During Xi’s trip, it endorsed China’s vision of a community with a “shared future”. Beijing’s three new projects – the Global Development Initiative, Global Security Initiative and Global Civilisation Initiative – also reportedly... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3245635/amid-us-china-rivalry-vietnams-sweet-spot-diplomacy-master-class?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3245635/amid-us-china-rivalry-vietnams-sweet-spot-diplomacy-master-class?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 22 Dec 2023 01:30:16 +0000 A clear message emerged from the first in-person China-EU summit in four years: building a multipolar world would require a systematic reform of global governance. China and Europe need to heal rifts and cooperate to play a pivotal and constructive role in ensuring a better future for global governance. The current international system, comprising the World Bank, International Monetary Fund and World Trade Organization, and led largely by the United States and Europe, was established after World... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3244828/china-eu-cooperation-needed-safeguard-globalisations-future?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3244828/china-eu-cooperation-needed-safeguard-globalisations-future?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 13 Dec 2023 21:30:09 +0000 The US House select committee on China released its first set of economic policy recommendations on Tuesday, urging China be moved to a “new tariff column” and that hi-tech workers from allied countries gain easier entry to the US. Adopted by voice vote, the sweeping report comprising almost 150 recommendations reflected efforts to reset terms of the bilateral economic relationship, curb the flow of US capital into China and invest in America’s technological leadership. The recommendations... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3244869/move-china-new-tariff-column-and-ease-entry-allies-hi-tech-workers-us-house-panel-urges?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3244869/move-china-new-tariff-column-and-ease-entry-allies-hi-tech-workers-us-house-panel-urges?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 12 Dec 2023 23:45:52 +0000 US President Joe Biden faces many international challenges, such as reducing US dependence on China, managing South China Sea disputes, supporting Ukraine against Russia’s invasion and the backlash over his stance on Israel. These issues are reminiscent of America’s geopolitical dilemmas during the Cold War, when Henry Kissinger was a key figure in shaping diplomatic and strategic relations. Can Biden learn from Kissinger’s approach? The answer depends on what kind of legacy Biden wants. His... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3244074/how-bidens-foreign-and-trade-policy-flip-flops-are-confusing-us-allies?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3244074/how-bidens-foreign-and-trade-policy-flip-flops-are-confusing-us-allies?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 08 Dec 2023 21:30:08 +0000 We live in an era where conflict can destabilise even the most robust international relations and affect global social and economic development. It has rarely been more important for governments, business leaders and people of influence to promote dialogue for the betterment of humanity and to focus on the significant issues we face. Amid the narrative fuelling geopolitical tensions between the world’s pre-eminent superpowers, there has been an alarming appetite within media factions to promote... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3243277/dont-buy-narrative-us-china-clash-or-chinese-economic-crash?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3243277/dont-buy-narrative-us-china-clash-or-chinese-economic-crash?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 01 Dec 2023 01:30:09 +0000 Manufacturing heavyweights China and Vietnam have stepped up talks toward improving economic ties that could give Chinese railway contractors and hi-tech firms, among others, a stronger hold in the Southeast Asian country. Chinese Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao told Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on Saturday in Ho Chi Minh City that the neighbours should cooperate on “interconnection”. Pham, meanwhile, advocated the promotion of railway links, according to a statement from the... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3242981/china-vietnam-seek-rail-and-hi-tech-interconnection-trade-investment-skyrockets?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3242981/china-vietnam-seek-rail-and-hi-tech-interconnection-trade-investment-skyrockets?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Nov 2023 22:00:27 +0000 China’s international trade representative said the country is making progress toward joining a Pacific Rim digital economy deal while also taking care to mention it opposes any “small cliques” among nations – language that analysts say is aimed at avoiding the dangers of being cut off from global value chains. Trade representative Wang Shouwen said that talks have led to “positive progress” for China’s membership in the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement (DEPA) when he attended a meeting... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3241806/china-wary-isolation-asks-asia-pacific-countries-avoid-cliques?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3241806/china-wary-isolation-asks-asia-pacific-countries-avoid-cliques?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 16 Nov 2023 13:00:39 +0000 Washington needs a “serious, clear-eyed” economic approach to China as it seeks to expand trade and diversify supply chains across allies and partners, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Thursday. Speaking at the Asia Society in Washington in a speech reviewing the White House’s economic strategy for the Indo-Pacific, Yellen reiterated that the US did not seek to decouple from China. “We have no interest in such a divided world and its disastrous effects,” she said. But Yellen stressed... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3240153/us-economic-approach-china-must-be-serious-clear-eyed-says-treasury-secretary-janet-yellen?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3240153/us-economic-approach-china-must-be-serious-clear-eyed-says-treasury-secretary-janet-yellen?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 02 Nov 2023 21:45:25 +0000 Australia’s trade minister underscored to his Japanese counterpart the strength of bilateral ties between the nations and reassured Tokyo that Canberra would listen to its concerns on any applications to join a regional trade agreement. Regarding the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, “we will continue to be like-minded. We value our partnership with Japan,” Australian Trade Minister Don Farrell said in Osaka on Sunday in a meeting with Japan’s Economy... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3239615/australia-reassures-japan-cptpp-trade-pact-and-strength-relationship?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3239615/australia-reassures-japan-cptpp-trade-pact-and-strength-relationship?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 29 Oct 2023 19:38:04 +0000 Shanghai has opened an expansive industrial park focusing on the data industry, as the city pushes forward its ambitious three-year digital economy blueprint as part of China’s efforts to boost digital trade. The International Data Economy Industrial Park, located in the pilot free-trade zone of Lingang, is tasked with “implementing safe and orderly cross-border flows of international online data”, according to a policy document unveiled by Lingang officials at the International Data Economy... https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3239452/shanghai-opens-data-economy-industrial-park-pilot-free-trade-zone-lingang-amid-chinas-ai-push?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3239452/shanghai-opens-data-economy-industrial-park-pilot-free-trade-zone-lingang-amid-chinas-ai-push?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Oct 2023 10:30:16 +0000 With relations between China and Australia improving in the lead-up to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s long-anticipated visit next week, sources said Canberra will not stand in the way of Beijing joining one of the world’s biggest multilateral trade deals. Australia “will not oppose China joining the CPTPP” – the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership – and will “consider China’s application on its merits”, one source said, emphasising that this is not a vow to... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3239166/china-australia-relations-anthony-albaneses-visit-canberra-will-not-oppose-beijings-cptpp-bid?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3239166/china-australia-relations-anthony-albaneses-visit-canberra-will-not-oppose-beijings-cptpp-bid?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 Oct 2023 01:30:42 +0000 Rapidly shifting global dynamics could see Australia explore new economic ties with China, an observer said. This came as Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced he would visit Beijing next month to meet President Xi Jinping, and China indicated it would suspend tariffs on Australian wine. The Chinese Ministry of Commerce confirmed on Sunday that Beijing had reached an agreement with Canberra on a “proper resolution” of trade disputes over wine and wind towers, after similar... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3238797/australia-wants-new-type-relationship-china-analyst-says-prime-minister-albanese-declares-4-day?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3238797/australia-wants-new-type-relationship-china-analyst-says-prime-minister-albanese-declares-4-day?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 22 Oct 2023 09:22:11 +0000 The phrase “opening up” has rich implications in China. Its original meaning was about Deng Xiaoping’s policy of welcoming foreign investment and technology, but it also has a strong ideological undertone of accepting new ideas. Economic liberalisation and tolerance of new views have been mutually reinforcing over the past few decades, pushing forward China’s development, and it is hard to say which is more important. To some extent, China’s economic growth in the last four decades would not... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3236510/chinas-opening-policy-risks-becoming-empty-promise-without-going-beyond-simple-business-deals?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3236510/chinas-opening-policy-risks-becoming-empty-promise-without-going-beyond-simple-business-deals?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Oct 2023 23:00:17 +0000 Britain and New Zealand would consider altering the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership to entice the US to join, its chief trade negotiators said on Wednesday. Asked whether New Zealand, the trade bloc’s current chair, would be open to changing labour and “rules of origin” commitments in the CPTPP if the US were interested in joining, its deputy trade and economic secretary Vangelis Vitalis said: “We’re in an ongoing process of updating and upgrading the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3235250/britain-new-zealand-would-consider-altering-trade-partnership-entice-us-join-top-negotiators?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3235250/britain-new-zealand-would-consider-altering-trade-partnership-entice-us-join-top-negotiators?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 20 Sep 2023 22:43:31 +0000 A major US-led economic initiative aimed at countering China’s many trade agreements in the Indo-Pacific region is failing and needs to be urgently strengthened if it has any hope of keeping pace, a new report concludes. The report, released on Monday by the Asia Society Policy Institute (ASPI), argues that the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF), announced in May 2022 by US President Joe Biden with great fanfare and joined by 14 countries, will probably fall short of creating a true... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3234189/bidens-indo-pacific-economic-initiative-must-be-strengthened-if-it-hopes-counter-china-report?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3234189/bidens-indo-pacific-economic-initiative-must-be-strengthened-if-it-hopes-counter-china-report?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 11 Sep 2023 18:02:13 +0000 For years, Beijing has counted on the historic animosity between Japan and South Korea as part of its divide and conquer playbook, even as Washington has worked to bolster its alliances and counter China’s growing footprint. At this week’s summit between the leaders of Japan, South Korea and the United States, Washington is hoping to permanently blunt with a show of unity that Chinese advantage on the geopolitical chessboard. On Friday, US President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3231213/joe-bidens-us-summit-japanese-south-korean-leaders-looks-send-unity-message?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3231213/joe-bidens-us-summit-japanese-south-korean-leaders-looks-send-unity-message?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 15 Aug 2023 20:20:57 +0000 The decision by members of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) in mid-July not to take action on China’s application to join the trade pact, was disappointing and took many in China by surprise. The CPTPP operates on the principle of consensus. The existing members must give unanimous support before any other country is allowed into the trading club. It was clear before the meeting that members were divided in their positions on China’s application.... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3230475/china-joining-cptpp-will-benefit-everyone-so-why-wont-west-let-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3230475/china-joining-cptpp-will-benefit-everyone-so-why-wont-west-let-it?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 11 Aug 2023 17:00:15 +0000 The US should abandon the idea of “American primacy” if it hopes to counter China’s sway in the “multi-actor” Southeast Asia region, the Asia Society has urged in a new report. Observing that the region is now “genuinely multipolar, and China may, in fact, be the region’s primary power”, the report, titled Prioritizing Southeast Asia in American China Strategy and released on Tuesday, concluded that “America is only one of many regional actors”. The report, a product of the society’s Centre on... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3229656/us-should-drop-pursuit-american-primacy-southeast-asia-report-urges?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3229656/us-should-drop-pursuit-american-primacy-southeast-asia-report-urges?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 01 Aug 2023 15:01:39 +0000 The UK government on Sunday announced it had formally signed a treaty to join a major Indo-Pacific bloc, as it looks beyond Europe for trading opportunities post-Brexit. Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch signed the accession protocol for the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) in New Zealand. It makes the United Kingdom the first new member and first European nation to join the bloc since it was created in 2018. The United Kingdom has come... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3227871/uk-formally-signs-cptpp-trading-bloc-it-looks-beyond-europe-trade-post-brexit?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3227871/uk-formally-signs-cptpp-trading-bloc-it-looks-beyond-europe-trade-post-brexit?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 16 Jul 2023 01:58:37 +0000 China has unveiled new measures to help its bid to join an Asia-Pacific trade agreement as Beijing presses on with its goal to reach the standards of the 11-nation deal, despite the thresholds for entry deemed by some members to be too high for the world’s second-largest economy. The measures, part of a document on opening up, will be introduced on a trial basis in some of China’s free-trade zones and ports, and are aimed at aligning with “high-standard international economic and trade rules”,... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3226158/china-ease-economic-and-trade-rules-aid-cptpp-pact-bid-amid-scepticism-over-reform-commitment?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3226158/china-ease-economic-and-trade-rules-aid-cptpp-pact-bid-amid-scepticism-over-reform-commitment?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 30 Jun 2023 11:30:11 +0000 New Zealand on Wednesday publicly endorsed China’s participation in both an Asia-Pacific trade agreement and a digital economy pact during Prime Minister Chris Hipkins’ first visit to the country. China applied to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) in September 2021 and Digital Economy Partnership Agreement (DEPA) in November 2021. New Zealand “is aware of the high thresholds that participants of CPTPP should conform”, while it also “welcomes... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3225781/chinas-asia-pacific-trade-deal-digital-economy-pact-aspirations-backed-new-zealand?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3225781/chinas-asia-pacific-trade-deal-digital-economy-pact-aspirations-backed-new-zealand?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 28 Jun 2023 11:15:15 +0000 China has been pushing for membership in a high-level Asia-Pacific trade and investment pact and will step up efforts to attract foreign investment, according to the country’s top trade negotiator. Wang Shouwen, China’s vice-minister for commerce, said Beijing had researched more than 2,300 clauses and items in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and combed through the reforms, laws and regulations that the country needed to carry out and revise for... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3224486/china-pushes-asia-pacific-trade-agreement-membership-promises-actively-attract-foreign-investment?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3224486/china-pushes-asia-pacific-trade-agreement-membership-promises-actively-attract-foreign-investment?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 18 Jun 2023 06:23:31 +0000 Beijing should not seek a global “kingship”, but instead build an Asian community as the first step to counter Washington’s decoupling endeavours, according to Tsinghua University finance professor who specialises in the US-China trade war. Ju Jiandong, chair professor of finance at the Beijing-based institute, has long advocated for a bigger role for China in global economic governance. His comments in the latest issue of the Tsinghua Financial Review this week came ahead of a two-day visit to... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3224366/china-should-avoid-seeking-global-kingship-amid-us-tensions-academic-says-ahead-antony-blinken-visit?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3224366/china-should-avoid-seeking-global-kingship-amid-us-tensions-academic-says-ahead-antony-blinken-visit?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 Jun 2023 13:30:18 +0000 Washington’s top trade official acknowledged encountering resistance and “anxiety” in promoting the Biden administration’s new vision of a trade policy focused on American workers while it slashes reliance on China. US Trade Representative Katherine Tai on Thursday said “fragile supply chains” and “an unsustainable version of globalisation” were negative outcomes from decades of championing market liberalisation and low prices for consumers as domestic manufacturing suffered. “When efficiency... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3224257/anxiety-over-new-us-trade-policy-focused-american-workers-cutting-china-reliance-katherine-tai?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3224257/anxiety-over-new-us-trade-policy-focused-american-workers-cutting-china-reliance-katherine-tai?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 15 Jun 2023 22:16:29 +0000 When Detroit filed for bankruptcy in 2013, many news outlets used the ruins of Michigan Central Station as an illustration of the city’s long, slow collapse. Last month, less than two miles from the 20th century rail junction, US President Joe Biden’s top trade official hosted counterparts from 21 Asia-Pacific economies to pitch a new vision of American trade policy. “Detroit has experienced first-hand some of the most negative impacts of an aggressive liberalisation of trade and... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3222994/detroit-host-city-recent-apec-meetings-embodies-joe-bidens-trade-policy-goal-renewal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3222994/detroit-host-city-recent-apec-meetings-embodies-joe-bidens-trade-policy-goal-renewal?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Jun 2023 15:00:19 +0000 Washington is engaging with its allies around the world to surmount China’s recent ban of American semiconductor company Micron from its key infrastructure projects, US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said on Saturday. “We see it as, plain and simple, economic coercion,” said Raimondo of the blacklisting as a ministerial meeting of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) ended in Detroit, Michigan. “We won’t tolerate it, nor do we think it will be successful.” The US was “closely engaging... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3222070/amid-micron-ban-us-working-allies-beat-chinas-economic-coercion-commerce-secretary?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3222070/amid-micron-ban-us-working-allies-beat-chinas-economic-coercion-commerce-secretary?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 27 May 2023 20:15:33 +0000 China failed to secure a public endorsement from Australia to join a Pacific Rim-focused trading bloc during a recent high-profile visit to Beijing by Australia’s trade minister, multiple sources tell the Post. Beijing wanted “a clear commitment from Australia, preferably public” that Canberra would support China’s bid to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and “deny Taiwan’s membership”, during minister Don Farrell’s trip in Beijing in early... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3221425/chinas-trade-pact-bid-impossible-australia-approve-while-beijings-sanctions-remain-sources-say?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3221425/chinas-trade-pact-bid-impossible-australia-approve-while-beijings-sanctions-remain-sources-say?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 22 May 2023 20:00:10 +0000 Members of a Pacific Rim-focused trading bloc that China is trying to join will likely not allow Beijing in based on the country’s track record on market access, said a Republican US senator involved in trade issues. Asked whether Beijing’s push to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) should prompt the US to restart entry negotiations, Senator Bill Hagerty of Tennessee said that multilateral agreements were “hard to do” and that Beijing’s bid... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3219190/china-will-be-kept-out-comprehensive-and-progressive-trans-pacific-partnership-us-senator-predicts?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3219190/china-will-be-kept-out-comprehensive-and-progressive-trans-pacific-partnership-us-senator-predicts?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 02 May 2023 21:55:34 +0000 The United States has no intention to decouple from China even as it continues to face trade tensions with Asia’s biggest economy, Washington’s trade tsar has said. The remarks by Trade Representative Katherine Tai follow similar comments by others, including the Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who have warned that decoupling would be “disastrous” for the US and the world. Tai, speaking to Asia-Pacific journalists in a teleconference, said she carried a similar message during her recent visits... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3218430/us-has-no-decoupling-plans-despite-complex-ties-china-trade-chief-katherine-tai?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3218430/us-has-no-decoupling-plans-despite-complex-ties-china-trade-chief-katherine-tai?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 26 Apr 2023 09:27:54 +0000