Japanese business leaders welcomed the signing of the world’s largest trade deal by Tokyo and 14 other Asia-Pacific partners on Sunday, expecting a boost in trade and investment in the region and strengthening of supply chains.
“The signing is extremely significant toward realizing a free and open international economic order” at a time when some countries are becoming inward-looking due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, said Hiroaki Nakanishi, chairman of Keidanren, Japan’s largest business lobby.
The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, covering some 46% of Japan’s total trade, will be the country’s first trade deal with both China, its largest trading partner, and South Korea, its third largest.
Under the deal, Japan will see tariffs eliminated on 86% of items exported to China, 81% to South Korea and 88% to the countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Australia and New Zealand.
RCEP also sets common rules on e-commerce, intellectual property, customs and rules of origins.
Due to the rules and lowering of tariffs, supply chains established by Japanese companies in Asia “will become more broad, effective and resilient,” Akio Mimura, chairman of Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said in a statement.
The 15 signatories to the deal said Sunday the pact remains open for India, which has skipped all negotiations since late last year due to concerns about opening up its market to China, and included provisions that would facilitate the Southern Asian country’s smooth participation should it decide to return to the pact.
“We hope RCEP members will tenaciously encourage” India’s return to the pact, which will contribute to strengthening supply chains encompassing the region, said Ken Kobayashi, chairman of the Japan Foreign Trade Council.
Among the agreements on market access with China, the world’s second-largest economy will incrementally eliminate the 40% tariff it imposes on Japanese sake over 21 years after the deal takes effect.
China will also remove tariffs on some 87% of Japanese auto parts, steel products and household appliances, making 86% of Japan’s China-bound industrial goods tariff-free as a result, sharply up from 8%.
Japan will remove tariffs on 49% to 61% of agricultural and fisheries products, but excluding five sensitive product categories — rice, wheat, dairy products, sugar, and beef and pork — and 47% to 99.1% of industrial goods.
RCEP consists of 10 ASEAN countries — Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam — plus Japan, China, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. Japan has free trade frameworks in effect with ASEAN, Australia and New Zealand.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 100 points in late-morning trading, helped by strength in base metal and utility stocks, while U.S. stock markets were mixed.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 103.40 points at 24,542.48.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 192.31 points at 42,932.73. The S&P 500 index was up 7.14 points at 5,822.40, while the Nasdaq composite was down 9.03 points at 18,306.56.
The Canadian dollar traded for 72.61 cents US compared with 72.44 cents US on Tuesday.
The November crude oil contract was down 71 cents at US$69.87 per barrel and the November natural gas contract was down eight cents at US$2.42 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$7.20 at US$2,686.10 an ounce and the December copper contract was up a penny at US$4.35 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 16, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 200 points in late-morning trading, while U.S. stock markets were also headed higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 205.86 points at 24,508.12.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 336.62 points at 42,790.74. The S&P 500 index was up 34.19 points at 5,814.24, while the Nasdaq composite was up 60.27 points at 18.342.32.
The Canadian dollar traded for 72.61 cents US compared with 72.71 cents US on Thursday.
The November crude oil contract was down 15 cents at US$75.70 per barrel and the November natural gas contract was down two cents at US$2.65 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was down US$29.60 at US$2,668.90 an ounce and the December copper contract was up four cents at US$4.47 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 11, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was little changed in late-morning trading as the financial sector fell, but energy and base metal stocks moved higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 0.05 of a point at 24,224.95.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 94.31 points at 42,417.69. The S&P 500 index was down 10.91 points at 5,781.13, while the Nasdaq composite was down 29.59 points at 18,262.03.
The Canadian dollar traded for 72.71 cents US compared with 73.05 cents US on Wednesday.
The November crude oil contract was up US$1.69 at US$74.93 per barrel and the November natural gas contract was up a penny at US$2.67 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$14.70 at US$2,640.70 an ounce and the December copper contract was up two cents at US$4.42 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 10, 2024.
