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TPP or ASEAN+N: a Regional Perspective Stephen Yan-Leung Cheung Chair, Hong Kong Committee for Pacific Economic Cooperation 4 October, 2012 Taipei. Overview. Part I: Asia and the ASEAN track Part II: Asia and the TPP track Part III: Case study on Impacts. Part I :. Asia and the ASEAN Track.
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TPP or ASEAN+N:a Regional PerspectiveStephen Yan-Leung CheungChair, Hong Kong Committee for Pacific Economic Cooperation4 October, 2012Taipei
Overview • Part I: Asia and the ASEAN track • Part II: Asia and the TPP track • Part III: Case study on Impacts
Part I: Asia and the ASEAN Track
Regional Strategy in the 21st Century • Actively involved in the Asian economic integration • Implementing FTA strategy • Deepening economic reforms • Maintaining stable regional environment
China’s FTA Map Source: Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China
ASEAN+N Partnership • Rapid development over past decades • Wide-ranged and multi-faceted • Goods, Service, 2-way investment, Energy, Transport, Culture… • Multi-level cooperation mechanism • China-ASEAN summit, Foreign Ministers Meeting, Senior Officials Consultations, Joint Cooperation Committee… • Open and inclusive partnership
Rapid development: trade between China and ASEAN Source: Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China
Future of the ASEAN Track • ASEAN+1 • ASEAN+3 • ASEAN+6 • ASEAN+6+2 (Russia, U.S.) • …… • FTAAP
Part II: Asia and the TPP Track
TPP:21st Century and High-Standard Agreement • Covering a wider range of topics than established FTAs • Open to newcomer: including accession clause (which is very unusual for a FTA) • Geographically, a real trans-pacific FTA • Binding agreements • With U.S. engaged
Potential Benefits for Major Players • Increasing market access, competiveness and profitability • Increasing market size • Easier capital/investment flows • Uniform rules and standards • Rule-making • Stimulating reform
TPP Negotiation is still UP INTHE AIR • Too ambitious may not be feasible • No clear guideline for how to integrate the various established regional and bilateral agreements into TPP framework • Bargaining costs roar as more countries join in the negotiation
Gains for Major Players Income Effect under Different Scenarios Source: Shen Mingshui, “A cost benefits analysis of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP): a Chinese perspective”, Journal of Contemporary Asia-Pacific Studies, 2012.
Negotiation covering sensitive areas and issues • Environmental protection, Intellectual property rights, Labor, Financial service, Institutions, Telecommunication, … • Reforms of State-Owned Enterprise (SOE) • Convertibility of the capital account
Will the TPP Negotiation Prevail? • Japan and Korea have strong interest, but both hesitate • China would NOT Join the Negotiation in the Short and Medium Term • TPP and ASEAN will coexist, with U.S. leading the former, China actively engaging in the latter
Part III: Potential Impacts on China • Trade diversion • Weakening China’s influence around Asia-Pacific • “Spaghetti bowl phenomenon” increases trade costs (complex rules of origin) • Impeding structural reform
Possible Policy Responses of China • Expanding domestic demand • Product differentiation • Concluding bilateral or multilateral FTAs • China-Japan-Korea FTA • China-Korea FTA • … • Consolidating China-ASEAN • “Greater China FTA” • Increasing overseas direct investment (ODI)