RCEP: Turning Point for ASEAN? SYNOPSIS COMMENTARY RCEP and CPTPP

COMMENTARY ON 2 NOVEMBER 2021, following the endorsement of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) by Australia and New Zealand, the proposed new regional arrangement reached the required threshold of ratification by six ASEAN member states and three non-ASEAN nations. [...] However, RCEP substantially simplifies procedures and lowers the costs of trade in the region, laying foundations for further integration, and prepares ASEAN for the challenges that lie ahead. [...] Instead of the myriad of rules, firms in ASEAN will follow a single set of rules, that will ease business and boost ASEAN’s attractiveness as a destination for trade and investment. [...] Intra-ASEAN trade is 25 percent of the grouping’s total trade with the world, and there is high potential for growth as the region embarks on services liberalisation and digital transformation. [...] RCEP will boost the attractiveness of the region for supply chains; prepare the ground for meeting the challenges of the Fourth Industrial Revolution; and strengthen the resolve in seeking more cross-border solutions in mitigating the economic impact of climate change and non-traditional security threats.