UK on verge of signing Indo-Pacific trade deal

Partnership set to give British businesses easier access to markets worth $10 trillion

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak with Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida in London after signing a UK-Japan defence agreement in January, with Britain now on the cusp of a new Indo-Pacific trade deal. PA

The UK is entering final negotiations to join an Indo-Pacific trade deal as the government moves the economy away from the European Union.

Britain is on the verge of becoming the first non-founding member of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

The partnership will give UK businesses easier access to markets worth a combined $10 trillion.

Finishing touches are being added with UK ministers meeting counterparts in various Indo-Pacific nations this week.

The CPTPP, which was formed in 2018, covers 11 countries: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam.

A total of 13 per cent of global domestic product and 15 per cent of global trade comes from CPTPP members.

"Negotiations have been proceeding well on CPTPP, and ministers are due to have discussions with their counterparts later this week,” Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's spokesman said.

The UK’s accession to the pact is “great progress”, the Department for Business and Trade said.

“The UK is trailblazing. This is changing the agreement from being a regional agreement to a global agreement,” said Stephanie Rickard, professor of political science at the London School of Economics.

Scottish whisky exports, as well as electronic and digital trade are likely to receive a boost from CPTPP membership, Ms Rickard said.

Currently 8 per cent of British exports go to CPTPP member countries, but this is expected to grow rapidly after joining the trade deal.

There is a clear pivot towards the Indo-Pacific region,” Ms Rickard said. “This is going to help reorientate our trade towards other parts of the world which are faster growing, both in terms of population growth and economic growth,” said Martin Beck, chief economic adviser to the EY Item Club.

“It is a positive sign in terms of shifting the focus of the UK trade away from Europe.”

The government will provide an update at the "earliest possible opportunity," the Prime Minister’s spokesman said.