Economic focus October 2015: Trans-Pacific Partnership – who benefits?

Agreement was reached on the Trans-Pacific Partnership in early October. The TPP is a trade agreement that will eliminate tariffs on thousands of goods and services as well as other barriers to trade between member countries, creating a trading block that will be close to the EU in scale. We expect the TPP to boost trade, investment and integration between member countries, likely at the expense of non-members. Notably, China is not currently a member of the TPP – is this a threat to China's export industries? Perhaps, but it may also be an incentive for China to progress its own reform agenda.