How US Businesses Can Access the East Asian US$25 Trillion RCEP Free Trade Market Agreement via Existing Agreements

By Chris Devonshire-Ellis  

China has ratified the much-anticipated Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) free trade agreement and said that it hopes other members will ratify the deal for it to take effect from January 1, 2022. That is just five months from now.  

The RCEP free trade agreement (FTA) includes China, Japan, South Korea, the ASEAN nations of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam together with Australia and New Zealand.  

For US businesses and investors, the RCEP’s sheer size makes it significant. Participating economies account for 29 percent of global GDP and about 30 percent of the world’s population. This equates to a market value of close to US$25 trillion and a total consumer base of about 2.5 billion, of whom an estimated 1 billion are middle-class consumers. 

The primary aim of…