If the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) falls through, China is ready to “pounce in” to engage with the 11 countries the United States has been working with in negotiating TPP, a U.S. government official said this week. With both U.S. presidential candidates opposing TPP, doubts continue to grow over whether the U.S. Congress would ratify the agreement.
“We really can’t afford to sit on the sidelines and lose out, said Fred Hochberg, chairman of the U.S. Export-Import Bank, told the press while attending the India Economic Summit of the World Economic Forum in New Delhi. “If we don’t do TPP, China is ready to engage with them.” He also pointed out that the rest of the world is moving quickly on free trade agreements with 600 already in place.
China is the key driver of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, a trade deal between the 10 members states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, plus regional trading partners, including Australia, India, Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea.
