The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) is a free trade agreement between Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam. It represents 13.4% of global GDP, making it one of the world's largest free-trade areas. The agreement evolved from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), which was never ratified due to the withdrawal of the United States. The CPTPP was created as a succeeding agreement, retaining two-thirds of its predecessor's provisions. The agreement entered into force for the initial six ratifying countries on 30 December 2018.

 

The CPTPP includes detailed standards for intellectual property and protections against intellectual property theft. The chapter on state-owned enterprises (SOEs) requires signatories to share information about SOEs with each other, with the intent of engaging with the issue of state intervention in markets. The CPTPP commission in 2023 is chaired by New Zealand.

 

Recently, the U.K. signed the CPTPP, citing the agreement's success as an example of "post-Brexit freedoms". India did not join the CPTPP as it seeks to place greater labor and environmental standards on its other partners and the CPTPP draft includes narrowly detailed qualifications on standards for investment protection, provisions to protect the host state’s right to regulate, and the imposition of detailed transparency requirements.

 

The CPTPP is significant as it creates a free trade area among the Asia-Pacific countries, providing them with a level of access to each other's markets that they may not have had previously. It also sets standards and guidelines for labor and environmental protections, as well as intellectual property rights. By signing the CPTPP, countries can increase their economic integration and competitiveness, while also improving standards for workers and the environment.