MANILA, Oct. 25 (Xinhua) -- The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) trade pact is poised to change the world's economic stature through its commitment to liberalized trade, said a Philippine foreign relations expert.
Aaron Jed Rabena, a research fellow at the Manila-based think tank Asia Pacific Pathways to Progress Foundation, told Xinhua in a recent interview that the conclusion of negotiations and implementation of the RCEP will open up new alternative markets for the 16 countries and help them ward-off protectionist measures and gain more cooperation from the free trade agreement (FTA).
The RCEP is a proposed FTA between the 10 member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the grouping's six free trade partners, namely Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea, and New Zealand.
"It (RCEP) is not just a testament to liberalized trade among ASEAN members and partners, it is also proof that many countries are in support of freer trade, an open global economy, and uphold the credibility of international regimes," Rabena said.
"RCEP will have a significant effect in shaping the present world economy by ensuring that more countries through a multilateral FTA still prefer or are committed to liberalized trade," Rabena added.
Dubbed as the bastion of the new wave of Asian FTAs, the RCEP focuses on vital areas such as elimination of tariffs on goods and services, as well as technical cooperation in investment flows, and dispute settlement mechanism, which will yield a market of 3.5 billion people, Rabena said.
"RCEP member-countries account for 32.2 percent of global gross domestic product (GDP) and almost half of the world's population. It's a 16-member trade partnership, that's how big of an impact the RCEP agreement is," Rabena said.
RCEP economies also account for 29.1 percent of global trade and about one-third of global investment inflows.
Rabena remains optimistic that through bilateral and multilateral dialogues, ASEAN and its partners may operate by way of bridging fiscal and cultural gaps.
China's role in the negotiations, he said, is also deemed as a "positive force" that can support ASEAN's agenda through its efforts in the continued negotiations.
Philippine Trade and Industry Secretary Ramon Lopez said early this month that the negotiations of the RCEP is "very probable" to be finished within this year.
