Broad deal reached on Trans-Pacific Partnership

New Zealand Trade Minister Tim Groser warned that failing to reach a deal in Atlanta would have worrying implications for efforts to bind countries together through trade and investment.

Japanese Economic and Fiscal Policy Minister Akira Amari told reporters in Atlanta progress had been made on a number of sticking points in the agreement – including dairy, a crucial issue for New Zealand. Many businesses support expanded trade as a way to open new markets to exports.

“We’re in the middle of that, we’re doing that now and will continue until we conclude this afternoon”.

A separate bilateral deal between Washington and Tokyo would also pledge an opening of Japan’s market and a reduction in the non-tariff barriers that United States officials and auto industry representatives have said kept imported vehicles to less than 10% of the Japanese market for decades.

The agreement on the Trans Pacific Partnership was reached Monday after marathon negotiating sessions in Atlanta through the weekend.

“[The] bigger picture will be profoundly important and beneficial to generations of the people in our respective countries”.

The tentative agreement must still be ratified by legislatures in TPP countries, including the Canadian Parliament, where passage is uncertain because of the looming federal election.

A standoff between Australia and the U.S. over intellectual property protections for biologic medicines held up a final multilateral deal for days, before the United States on Sunday backed away from its demand for at least eight years of data exclusivity.

A press conference was originally scheduled for 9am Monday (NZ time), but that was delayed a number of times before being postponed indefinitely.

“Australia’s current arrangements … are completely adequate and any proposed changes are non-negotiable, this is a red line issue for us”, he said.

The USA had sought 12 years of protection to encourage pharmaceutical companies to invest in expensive biological treatments, while Australia, New Zealand, and public health groups had sought a period of five years to bring down drug costs and reduce the burden on state-subsidized medical programs.

Negotiations on a free trade pact between the USA and 11 Pacific Rim countries has been extended as obstacles in dairy trade and pharmaceutical patent protection remain.

It was still unclear how that set of standards would influence pricing for future drugs. It also sets up dispute settlement guidelines between governments and foreign investors separate from national courts.

“Look, it’s not done yet”, said Andrew Robb, Australia’s trade minister. The potential for compromise over this issue was reportedly a final key to a deal. We will evaluate the details carefully and work to defeat this corporate trade deal if it does not measure up. The three signatories to that agreement, the United States, Canada and Mexico, are included in this one, as is Japan.

If implemented, it would be the largest trade deal the USA has negotiated since the North American Free Trade Agreement took effect in 1994.

“New Zealand not getting a good deal for dairy is like Japan not getting a deal on Toyota”.