Singapore To Participate In Other Regional Trade Pacts After US Withdraw From TPP

SINGAPORE, Jan 25 (Bernama) -- Singapore will continue to participate in other regional trade integration initiatives, after the US indicated that it will put out of the 12-country Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), Channel NewsAsia reported Tuesday. Quoting the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI), the report said Singapore is committed to pursuing a rule-based trading system and greater regional integration. "The agreement that the TPP parties has negotiated is one such pathway to achieve stronger trade linkages that will promote growth opportunities and job creation in all the member countries," said the ministry. An MTI spokesperson said that without the participation of the US, the TPP agreement could not come into effect. However, there are other regional integration initiatives still ongoing, including the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership and the proposal for a Free-Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific, the ministry added. "Singapore will continue to participate in these initiatives," the spokesperson was quoted as saying. US President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday to formally withdraw the US from the TPP. Trump's contention was that the TPP Agreement (TPPA) would cause job losses in the US and outflow of funds to other signatory countries. The TPPA was signed by Singapore and 11 other parties on Feb 4, 2016 in New Zealand. The pact cannot come into force without the US participation, as it accounts for about 60 per cent of the combined gross domestic product of the 12 members. Under the agreement, a minimum of six nations, accounting for 85 per cent of the combined GDP of the 12 members, must ratify before the pact can come into force. --BERNAMA