Mega-regional FTAs

Image credit: Ana María Palacio/pacificallianceblog.com

In the wake of the global financial crisis of 2008, several large new trade deals have been proposed to supposedly boost production, trade and growth outside the frame of the World Trade Organisation. These deals are called “mega-regionals” because they are not between two countries alone and involve large shares of world trade or investment. The following fall into this category:

– the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) between the US, Japan and 10 other countries surrounding the Pacific Ocean (Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru and Vietnam);
– the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) between the 28-member European Union and the US;
– the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement between the 10-member Association of South-East Asian Nations (Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam) and six countries ASEAN already has FTAs with (Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea);
– the Trade in Services Agreement (TiSA) being hammered out between 23 countries (Australia, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, EU, Hong Kong, Iceland, Israel, Japan, Korea, Liechtenstein, Mauritius, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Peru, Switzerland, Taiwan, Turkey and the US); and
– the Tripartite FTA (TFTA) merging three African regional economic communities: the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), Southern African Development Community (SADC) and East African Community (EAC).
– the Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA), next stage of the TFTA in which all 54 African Union states are expected to be member