RCEP, The World's Largest Free Trade Agreement to Signed in November

Jakarta, MINA – The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), the free trade bloc of ASEAN countries with their five partners, is certain to be signed in November 2020, said Indonesian Trade Minister Agus Suparmanto.

According to Minister Agus, the countries participating in this agreement are aware of the urgency of RCEP to maintain market openness, increase regional economic integration, and support economic recovery efforts due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The condition made the negotiations run according to the targets set.

“All market access negotiations, except with India, have been completed. The remaining outstanding issues have been resolved in principle to be finalized by the end of this month, ”said Minister Agus as quoted from a press release on Monday.

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“The entire text of the agreement has also almost completely gone through the legal scrubbing process.”

Minister Agus has just attended the 8th RCEP Ministerial Meeting which took place on Thursday.

According to Minister Agus RCEP is expected to maintain public and business confidence, especially during a pandemic.

In addition, strengthening the regional economic architecture and becoming the motor of world economic growth, said Minister Agus.

RCEP is the largest free trade bloc covering 45 percent of the world’s population and 30 percent of world trade with a combined GDP of US$ 2.6 trillion.

The block consists of 10 ASEAN countries and five other countries, namely Japan, New Zealand, Australia, South Korea, and China.

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India, previously one of the initiators of the agreement, resigned in November last year fearing that domestic producers would be hit by cheap goods from China. (T/RE1)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)