Singapore will push forward to ratify the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a change from other nations taking a wait and see approach after President Donald Trump withdrew the U.S. from the trade agreement. While the effort may be mostly symbolic, it does signal to other TPP nations that Singapore is still open to the agreement without the United States. Singapore’s Prime Minister said during a visit to TPP member nation Viet Nam last week that “Singapore is proceeding with the ratification,” according to online publication World Trade News. After Trump’s move, Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry had said that it would be focusing on other regional trade initiatives as TPP cannot come into effect in its current state. A Singapore trade official says that ratifying TPP is an effort by the country to “study the new balance of benefits” with other TPP members. Singapore is interested in either bilateral deals with TPP member countries or implementing TPP without the United States. U.S. agricultural exports included in the trade agreement were estimated to be worth $4 billion.
From the National Association of Farm Broadcasting news service.