On February 4, 2016, the Secretary of Economy of Mexico, Ildefonso Guajardo Villarreal, signed the Trans-Pacific Partnership, also known as the TPP, in Auckland, New Zealand, along with the Ministers of Commerce of the other 11 countries that make up the TPP: Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, the United States of America, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.
As established in the preamble of the TPP, this is a multilateral agreement that has been negotiated to promote economic integration, liberalize trade and investment, strengthen the competitiveness of businesses in global markets, support the growth and development of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, facilitate regional trade by promoting efficient customs procedures, promote high levels of environmental protection, and protect and enforce labor rights, among others.
The TPP is more than a Free Trade Agreement because it contains highly important provisions to trade and procedures, such as rules related to the importation of textiles and apparel, rules of origin, customs administration and trade facilitation, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, technical barriers to trade, trade remedies, and investment rules, among others, and it also regulates various aspects of trade as such relate to competition policies, elimination of employment discrimination, intellectual property, competitiveness and business facilitation, just to name a few. For Mexico, the TPP currently represents the most important multilateral trade negotiation it has conducted.
The Mexican Senate is currently analyzing and discussing the TPP in order to determine whether it will ratify it, as prescribed by the Mexican Constitution. The TPP is undergoing respective approval procedures in each signatory country. It is important to note that the text of the TPP states that the parties have a two-year term to provide notice that they have concluded their legal procedures to approve the TPP. If after this term all 12 parties have not made this notification as to approval, the TPP will become effective if at least six countries representing 85% of the GDP of the parties provide notice of approval in each of their countries.
The entry into force of the TPP represents a big step for Mexico to advance in the integration of a stronger economic and trade policy. Considering the benefits and significance of the TTP, one should stay informed as tothe TPP’s entry into force and the repercussions the TPP could have in each industry.
