China’s participation in CPTPP trade pact can change balance of power in international commerce

INTERNATIONAL DESK: China’s participation in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) pact has the potential to quadruple Beijing’s economic gains.

This would significantly change the balance of power in International commerce and also would leave the United States “increasingly isolated” as stated by the Chinese newspaper themselves, reported The HK Post.

As per The HK Post, this is in response to the historic AUKUS security alliance between UK, the US and Australia.

China has applied to join a key Asia-Pacific trade pact as it attempts to strengthen its position in the region.

China’s decision to join the CPTPP is seen as retaliation to counter the effect of the alliance whose sole purpose is to deal with and tackle china’s growing influence in the Asia- Pacific region.

China has been quick to describe the AUKUS alliance as extremely irresponsible and has further said that it severely risks damaging regional peace and has the potential to intensify the arms race, reported The HK Post.

The AUKUS pact allows Australia to build nuclear-powered submarines using technology provided by the US and the UK. It also covers other technical areas such as artificial intelligence and is seen as Australia’s biggest defense partnership deal in decades.

The CPTPP formally came into the picture in 2018 inked by 11 countries in Santiago which included Australia, Chile, Japan, and New Zealand, all in the Asia-Pacific.

The world economies included in the recent Trans-Pacific Partnership represent nearly half a billion consumers and accounts for 13.3 per cent of the global GDP, reported The HK Post.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership Pact which later became CPTPP was brought into existence as an economic bloc by the US to counter China’s growing influence in the Asia- Pacific, reported The HK Post.

However, in 2017, Donald Trump, the then President of the US pulled out of the deal.

Being one of the world’s largest economies, China’s participation in the pact has the potential to quadruple the economic gains of the agreement.

It can be said that joining the CPTPP would bring a major boost to China given its active participation in different free trade agreements with 14 other countries called the RCEP i.e. Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership.

As per The HK Post, one major concern would be whether China would use the Pact to avoid the tariffs imposed by Trump’s trade war. China could send raw materials to CPTPP members such as Vietnam. Factories there would send finished products to America, avoiding tariffs.

Japan, the country chairing the CPTPP this year, has stated that it would seek the consultation of the member countries to respond to China’s request. (ANI)