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Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)

Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)
The latest news, analysis and opinion on Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.
Shipping containers are stacked in April at Port Klang on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Photo: AP
China trade

Explainer | Tripwire clauses: why is China alarmed by Malaysia’s new trade deal with the US?

Controversial wording seen as a geopolitical trap designed to force neutral countries to uphold Western containment strategies.

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John Lee policy address 2025

Hong Kong business chamber spearheads local, mainland Chinese firms’ push abroad

US-China trade war

Open Questions | Truth in the truce: Wendy Cutler mulls if US-China trade can find lasting peace

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Open Questions series

Open Questions | China-US tariff truce likely to carry on if talks make progress, Cutler says

Trade expert Wendy Cutler expects the US and China to extend a mutual reduction in tariffs, if negotiations are productive, because both countries have been hurt by their trade war.

Japan

Japan’s Southeast Asia diplomacy ramps up as Ishiba courts Hanoi and Manila

Ishiba’s visits follow Chinese President Xi Jinping’s own tour of the region, reflecting a broader competition for influence.

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US-China trade war

Is Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ opening the door to China to join the CPTPP?

Members of the trans-Pacific trade bloc may be more inclined to allow China to join as they look to counter US tariff threats, analysts say.

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Diplomacy

Macroscope | Trump could end up making Asia, not America, great again

The US’ presence in Asia is entrenched but the prospect of a Europe-East Asia economic alliance is one card both regions could play.

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European Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maros Sefcovic meets Chinese Vice-Premier He Lifeng in Beijing, China, on March 27. Photo: EPA-EFE/Xinhua
Asean

Opinion | From Trump to tech titans, geopolitical traps await Southeast Asia

The US-China tech war and politicisation of tech firms are narrowing options for wary regional players.

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US-China relations

US urged to bolster Global South ties to counter China-Russia partnership

Washington must build up relations with ‘global swing states’ and offer a more ‘affirmative and assertive’ trade policy, say authors.

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Britain

Britain joins trans-Pacific pact in biggest post-Brexit trade deal

The UK announced last year that it would join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

Britain has completed its entry into the CPTPP agreement, one of its biggest trade deals since Brexit. File photo: AP
South China Sea

Help from Asean nations to counter China is unlikely: ex-Philippine Navy officer

As the Philippines pushes back in the South China Sea, ‘we have to accept that China successfully divided’ other Southeast Asian nations.

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A Chinese military vessel fires a water cannon at a Philippine resupply boat on its way to the Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea in March. Photo: Reuters
US presidential election 2024

Opinion | How a Trump victory could benefit the world

Trump’s protectionism and isolationist leanings could allow others to fill the void left by the US to promote greater stability.

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US presidential election 2024

Trump doubles down on China carmakers being unwelcome in US market

‘They’re going to pay a 100 per cent or maybe even a 200 per cent tariff,’ former president declares in battleground state of Michigan.

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Asean

Southeast Asia low priority for Donald Trump in event of US election win: report

Regional countries that have benefited from the US-China trade war could face trade barriers in a second Trump term, the Lowy Institute says.

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Then Vietnam’s Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, US President Donald Trump and Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte at the Asean summit in Manila on November 13, 2017. Photo: AFP
US-Asean relations

An America under Trump 2.0 makes Asia anxious – again

Asian nations are watching the 2024 US election with trepidation, worried a Trump comeback could upend the geopolitical landscape once more.

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Former US President Donald Trump steps on stage at a campaign event in New Hampshire earlier this year. Photo: AP
US presidential election 2024

Opinion | The world will look back on US foreign policy under Biden with nostalgia

Whether Trump or Harris wins, Biden’s departure will mark the end of an era of distinctly multilateral American leadership

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US-China relations

To boost US sway in Indo-Pacific, promote economic development: Senate

Washington should offer ‘alternatives to what our competitors are offering’, says Foreign Relations committee chair, referring to Beijing’s advances.

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United States

Opinion | How Biden’s foreign and trade policy flip-flops are confusing US allies

Biden’s statements on Taiwan, the US-China relationship and trade in the Indo-Pacific are creating confusion and mistrust. To keep his allies and supporters on board, he needs a decisive strategy – something he could learn from Kissinger and other political realists.

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Illustration: Craig Stephens
US-China relations

Opinion | Sino-US conflict, China crash? Xi-Biden dialogue suggests otherwise

US dialogue efforts, President Xi Jinping’s warm reception in San Francisco, including from business leaders, and China’s still-impressive economic growth say it all.

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US-China relations

US business group calls for progress on IPEF ‘trade pillar’ as talks hit snag

Two Democratic senators have asked Joe Biden’s administration to drop the trade element from the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, citing a lack of ‘enforceable labour standards’.

US-China relations

US economic approach to China must be ‘serious, clear-eyed’: Yellen

While reiterating Washington seeks not to decouple from Beijing, treasury secretary outlines strategy to expand trade in the Indo-Pacific.

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US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen speaks during an event hosted by the Asia Society Policy Institute in Washington on Thursday. Photo: Bloomberg
China-Australia relations

Exclusive | Canberra ‘will not oppose’ China’s CPTPP trade-pact bid

China has been trying to gain entry into the Asia-Pacific trade pact for two years, and Australia says it will ‘consider China’s application on its merits’ as bilateral ties warm.

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Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is keen on mending frayed trade ties with China when he visits next month. Photo: Bloomberg
South Korea

South Korea, UAE complete talks for bilateral trade deal

Investment ties between the nations have been steadily advancing, and South Korea was one of the first countries with which the Gulf state launched talks about the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).

China-EU relations

Opinion | In Thailand, China’s EV makers have found a refuge from EU subsidy probe

Thailand is quickly becoming Southeast Asia’s EV manufacturing hub as Chinese carmakers escaping geopolitical tensions set up shop in a state which has good relations with all the great powers.

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US-China relations

Opinion | To counter China’s Global South dominance, US must put trade before arms

The US still has distinct advantages, including, critically, a growing population. But it must ease off sanctions and its single-minded focus on security.

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India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi (right), US President Joe Biden (centre) and other world leaders arrive to pay respects at the Mahatma Gandhi memorial at Raj Ghat, on the sidelines of the G20 summit in New Delhi on September 10. Photo: Pool / AFP /Getty Images / TNS
Diplomacy

Asian Angle | US-Japan-South Korea’s boosted 3-way security ties still face domestic hurdles

High-flown rhetoric trumpeting a new ‘alliance’ between the three nations conceals political realities that were swept under the rug at last month’s Camp David summit.

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US President Joe Biden, South Korea’s Yoon Suk-yeol, and Japan’s Fumio Kishida at Camp David in the US last month. Photo: AP
US-China relations

Biden’s summit with Japanese, South Korean leaders looks to send ‘unity’ message

Meeting at Camp David is expected to result in a series of defence, economic and diplomatic agreements aimed at pushing back against China.

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CPTPP

Opinion | Geopolitics, not standards, blocking China from joining CPTPP

China joining the CPTPP would be a catalyst for economic reforms that address developed countries’ complaints while offering member nations easy access to the world’s largest consumer market. With Beijing showing readiness to take the steps needed to meet CPTPP standards, geopolitics seems to be the major obstacle.

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