The role and shape of international trade agreements is changing. No longer simple devices for easing the movement of goods across borders, it is becoming both an instrument of integrated economic regulation at the supra national level and a tool of international relations within the emerging...

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) was accepted by the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) as one among other pathfinders, including the ASEAN 3, ASEAN 6 and others, for a comprehensive Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific (FTAAP). Though the TPP negotiations do not include China at the...

This article discusses the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), the Regional Cooperative Economic Partnership (RCEP), and more briefly the third mega-free trade agreement, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) commenting on the progress (or lack thereof) realized with each over...

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement aims to be a high quality, 21st Century economic agreement that furthers economic integration in the Asia Pacific. In late 2011 it remains unclear whether the TPP will turn out to be a stepping stone or stumbling block towards regional or global...

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement, now in negotiation among nine Asia-Pacific countries, could yield annual global income gains of $295 billion (including $78 billion for the United States) and offers a pathway to free trade in the Asia-Pacific with potential gains of $1.9 trillion....

In the wake of the Asian century, the Asia-Pacific region has seen a proliferation of FTAs. The driving force behind the initial formation of these agreements since the 1990s, however, has moved away from focusing on economic incentives to more strategic geopolitical concerns. This article...

One of the selling points behind larger preferential trade agreements (PTAs) is the potential to encourage the spread of global value chains (GVCs). These supply chains are increasingly critical to the globalized economy. Large GVC operators may include up to 15,000 firms in their networks...