On November 15, 2020, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) was signed on the 4th RCEP Summit by 15 Asia Pacific countries including:
- Australia*
- China
- Japan*
- New Zealand*
- South Korea, plus members of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations)
- Brunei*
- Cambodia
- Indonesia
- Laos
- Malaysia*
- Myanmar
- Philippines
- Singapore*
- Thailand
- Vietnam*
RCEP is comprehensive and addresses a variety of topics including trade in goods, rule of origin, trade-in service, trade facilitation, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, trade remedies and etc. It covers an area with 2.2 billion people and includes many of the same countries of the CPTPP (Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement on the Trans-Pacific Partnership). [Countries with an * are also signatories to the CPTPP]
This agreement (RCEP) will enter into force, 60 days after it has been ratified by at least six ASEAN and three non-ASEAN signatory countries.
The complete legal text of the RCEP can be found here.
