UK to join CPTPP in December

The CPTPP is a free trade area spanning five continents and almost 600 million people once the UK joins. Following Peru’s ratification of the UK's deal to join the bloc, the agreement will enter into force by December 15.

More than 99 per cent of current UK goods exports to CPTPP members will be tariff-free once the deal enters into effect, helping businesses export more to CPTPP markets and contributing to the UK government’s priority of driving economic growth. By 2040, the agreement could boost the UK economy by around £2 billion ($2.2 billion) annually.

Before Peru, five other CPTPP members ratified the terms of the UK’s accession: Japan, Singapore, Chile, New Zealand and Vietnam. This means the agreement will come into force with those members by December 15, and subsequently with other members as they ratify. The UK continues to work closely with the remaining member countries, who are in the process of ratifying the deal.

As the first country to accede to this agreement, the UK will be well positioned to shape its future development, from influencing the development of the CPTPP rulebook to championing the group’s expansion to new economies.

UK Minister of State for Trade Policy, Douglas Alexander said, "This is good news for UK businesses, who are now one step closer to being able to take advantage of the opportunities our membership of CPTPP will bring. My message to businesses is to get in touch with the Department for Business and Trade to find out how the partnership could benefit your business, if you haven’t already."

"We’re extremely grateful to all the partners that have already ratified our accession - Japan, Singapore, Chile, New Zealand, Vietnam, and now Peru - and look forward to more doing so over the coming months," he added.

The United Kingdom formally signed a treaty to accede to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) trade group in New Zealand on July 16, kickstarting its membership of a modern and ambitious trade deal spanning 12 economies across Asia, the Pacific, and now Europe.

Vietnam is celebrating the fifth anniversary of its participation in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. Prof. Dr. Andreas Stoffers from the Friedrich Naumann Foundation in Hanoi reflects on the multifaceted impact of this landmark agreement on the nation’s economic landscape.

The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) gives member countries easier access to one another’s markets at preferential tariffs, even tariff-free trade for most items.