Component Definition
Market Access in Goods The conditions, tariff and non-tariff measures, agreed by members for the entry of specific goods into their markets Technical Barriers to Trade Ensures that technical regulations,
standards, and conformity assessment procedures are non-discriminatory and do not create unnecessary obstacles to trade
Sanitary and Phytosanitary An agreement on how governments can apply food safety and animal and plant health measures (sanitary and phytosanitary or SPS measures) sets out the basic rules in the WTO.
Customs Cooperation TPPA negotiators have reached
agreement on key elements of the customs text as well as on the fundamental importance of establishing customs procedures that are predictable, transparent and that expedite and facilitate trade, which will help link TPPA firms into regional production and supply chains. The text will ensure that goods are released from customs control as quickly as possible, while preserving the ability of customs authorities to strictly enforce customs laws and regulations.
TPPA countries also have agreed on the importance of close cooperation between authorities to ensure the effective implementation and operation of the agreement as well as other customs matters.
Rules of Origin Rules of origin are important in
implementing such trade policy instruments as anti-dumping and countervailing duties, origin marking, and safeguard measures.
Trade Remedies Trade remedies are measures designed
37 to provide relief to domestic industries that have been injured or threatened with injury by imports
Investment There are three main areas of work in
the WTO on trade and investment. The first is a Working Group established in 1996 to conduct analytical work on the relationship between trade and investment.
The second is the Agreement on Trade- Related Investment Measures (“TRIMs Agreement”). It is one of the Multilateral Agreements on Trade in Goods that prohibits trade-related investment measures, such as local content requirements, that are inconsistent with basic provisions of GATT 1994.
The third is The General Agreement on Trade in Services, which addresses foreign investment in services as one of four modes of supply of services.
Services In relation to services the TPPA aims to liberalize access for services companies so they receive better or equal treatment to service suppliers from TPPA countries’ other FTA partners and face a more level playing field in TPPA markets.
There are also provisions that would enable service suppliers to supply services without establishing an office in every TPPA country.
New or enhanced obligations in specific sectors important to promoting trade (e.g., enhanced disciplines for express delivery services that will promote regional supply chains and aid small businesses, which often are highly dependent on express delivery services for integration into supply chains and distribution networks).
The TPPA also aims to create commitments to liberalize foreign
38 financial services and insurance markets while protecting a government’s broad flexibility to regulate, including in the financial sector, and to take the actions necessary to ensure the stability and integrity of a financial system.
Non-Confirming Measures A non-conforming measure is any law, regulation, procedure, requirement or practice, which violates certain articles of the investment agreement. For example, a law prohibiting an investor of another member country to own a factory does not conform to the article on national treatment.
Financial Services The draft TPPA outline indicates that financial services, including insurance and insurance-related services, banking and related services, as well as auxiliary services of a financial nature, will be addressed in a separate chapter as in previous FTAs.
The original P-4 agreement did not include financial services provisions when it came into force in 2006.
However, the P-4 partners committed to concluding a financial services (and investment) chapter within two years—a commitment that was overtaken by the launch of the TPPA. The financial services chapter would adapt relevant provisions from the foreign investment chapter and the cross-border trade in services chapter.
Telecommunication The telecommunications text will
promote competitive access for telecommunications providers in TPPA markets, which will benefit consumers and help businesses in TPPA markets become more competitive. In addition to broad agreement on the need for reasonable network access for suppliers through interconnection and access to
39 physical facilities, TPPA countries are close to consensus on a broad range of provisions enhancing the transparency of the regulatory process, and ensuring rights of appeal of decisions. Additional proposals have been put forward on choice of technology and addressing the high cost of international mobile roaming.
E-Commerce The e-commerce text will enhance the
viability of the digital economy by ensuring that impediments to both consumer and businesses embracing this medium of trade are addressed.
Negotiators have made encouraging progress, including on provisions addressing customs duties in the digital environment, authentication of electronic transactions, and consumer protection. Additional proposals on information flows and treatment of digital products are under discussion.
Business Mobility Enterprise mobility describes a trend in business where work occurs away from a centralized location. Workers may use mobile devices or technology to work from home, from vacation or on the road. Workers engaged with enterprise mobility are different from digital nomads in that enterprise mobility refers not only to the mobility of workers but also to the mobility of corporate data and information.
Government Procurement Government procurement accounts for 10-15% of the GDP of an economy on average. It constitutes a significant market and an important aspect of international trade. The WTO's work on government procurement aims to promote transparency, integrity and competition in this market.
Competition Policy Addresses how domestic and
40 international competition policy instruments, such as antitrust or competition laws, interact with international trade.
Intellectual Property Rights Intellectual property rights are the rights given to persons over the creations of their minds. They usually give the creator an exclusive right over the use of his/her creation for a certain period of time.
TPPA countries have agreed to reinforce and develop existing World Trade Organization Agreement on Trade- Related Aspects of Intellectual Property (TRIPS) rights and obligations to ensure an effective and balanced approach to intellectual property rights among the TPPA countries.
Proposals are under discussion on many forms of intellectual property, including trademarks, geographical indications, copyright and related rights, patents, trade secrets, data required for the approval of certain regulated products, as well as intellectual property enforcement and genetic resources and traditional knowledge. TPPA countries have agreed to reflect in the text a shared commitment to the Doha Declaration on TRIPS and Public Health.
Labour One of the more controversial issues
that the TPPA partner countries are addressing pertains to the scope and depth of provisions on worker rights.
Supporters of strong worker rights, such as labour unions and certain nongovernment organizations (NGOs), are concerned that failure to promote and implement these rights, including collective bargaining, could lead to the imposition of low wages and poor conditions for workers by firms in those countries.
41 TPPA countries are discussing elements for a labour chapter that include commitments on labour rights protection and mechanisms to ensure cooperation, coordination, and dialogue on labour issues of mutual concern.
They agree on the importance of coordination to address the challenges of the 21st-century workforce through bilateral and regional cooperation on workplace practices to enhance workers’
wellbeing and employability, and to promote human capital development and high-performance workplaces.
Environment A meaningful outcome on environment
will ensure that the agreement appropriately addresses important trade and environment challenges and enhances the mutual supportiveness of trade and environment.
The TPPA countries share the view that the environment text should include effective provisions on trade-related issues that would help to reinforce environmental protection and are discussing an effective institutional arrangement to oversee implementation and a specific cooperation framework for addressing capacity building needs.
They also are discussing proposals on new issues, such as marine fisheries and other conservation issues, biodiversity, invasive alien species, climate change, and environmental goods and services.
Cooperation and Capacity Building The TPPA countries agree that capacity building and other forms of cooperation are critical both during the negotiations and post-conclusion to support TPPA countries’ ability to implement and take advantage of the agreement. They recognize that capacity building activities can be an effective tool in helping to address specific needs of developing countries in meeting the high standards
42 the TPPA countries have agreed to seek.
In this spirit, several cooperation and capacity building activities have already been implemented in response to specific requests and additional activities are being planned to assist developing countries in achieving the objectives of the agreement. The TPPA countries also are discussing specific text that will establish a demand-driven and flexible institutional mechanism to effectively facilitate and cooperation and capacity building assistance after the TPPA is implemented.
Horizontal Issues These include not only horizontal or cross-cutting issues that address best practices in several negotiations, such as with regulatory coherence, but also issues not generally addressed in previous U.S. FTAs, such as regulatory
coherence, supply chain
competitiveness, and small- and medium-sized enterprises.
Legal The negotiating groups have developed
consolidated legal text in virtually all- negotiating groups. In some areas, text is almost complete; in others, further work is needed to finalize text on specific issues. The texts contain brackets to indicate where differences remain.
The legal texts will cover all aspects of commercial relations among the TPPA countries. The following are the issues under negotiation and a summary of progress.
Source: Taken from WTO Trade Topics and the Office of the United States Trade Representative, Outlines of TPPA
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