The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement and the U.S. economy
Executive Summary -The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement is a free trade agreement initiated in 2005 and was joined by the U.S. in 2008 which proposes to liberalize trade in the Asia-Pacific region. -Negotiations are ongoing and held in secret. While the FTA’s existence and meetings are public knowledge, most of the information is classified and kept from U.S. government officials. However, several documents have been leaked to the public through various sources. -There is much clamor and concern over the Intellectual Property proposals put forth by the U.S. These proposals threaten to dial back public health safeguards set forth in the 2007 New Trade Deal of the Bush administration, increase prices of consumer goods, and restrict access to information on the internet. -There are 12 countries involved in negotiations, with China as an observer and considering entry. Overall, these countries make up about 40% of the world GDP and offer access to huge markets for the U.S. Nonetheless, the threat of losing jobs overseas, as with most FTAs, is cause for concern. -Past FTAs have resulted in an increase in U.S. trade deficit and a loss of jobs. However, analysis shows that American firms can benefit from these agreements as well with increased exports to new markets.
Brief History The Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership Agreement is a free trade agreement with the goal of liberalizing the borders and economies of the Asia-Pacific Region and was initiated in 2005 by Chile, New Zealand, Singapore, and later Brunei. Eight more countries have joined in the negotiations since 2008: the United States, Australia, Vietnam, Peru, Malaysia, Mexico, Japan, and Canada. China has also expressed interest in joining the agreement, but is not as of yet directly involved in negotiations. So far,