[CTC] TPP deal possible today

[Arthur Stamoulis]

A few articles below...

POLITICO

Mexico: TPP deal possible on Saturday

By Doug Palmer

10/02/2015 08:34PM EDT

ATLANTA - Negotiators could reach a deal Saturday in talks on the
Trans-Pacific Partnership pact, Mexican Economy Minister Ildefonso Guajardo
said tonight.

"If I have to bet, I would bet that yes," Guajardo told reporters, when
asked if he thought a deal would be reached on Saturday.

But he emphasized there was still work to do to put together a final
package. "We are not done yet," he said, before heading into a meeting with
top trade officials from the 11 other countries involved in the talks.

Mexico has been involved in hard-fought negotiations over rules-of-origin
for auto, which several sources have said appeared nearly resolved.

Other outstanding issues involve dairy market access, which Akira Amari,
Japan's minister for the TPP, said now primarily involve the United States
and New Zealand. Negotiators are also trying to reach a deal on the length
of data exclusivity for biologics. The United States faces resistance from
other countries in its bid to maintain a period of at least eight years.

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INSIDE US TRADE

Daily News

TPP Countries Set Deadlines For Final Tariff, NCM Offers; Plenary Pushed
Back

Posted: October 02, 2015

ATLANTA -- Amid an intense push to complete the Trans-Pacific Partnership
(TPP), negotiators have set deadlines for final offers on tariffs and
non-conforming measures of 4 a.m. and 10 a.m., respectively, on Saturday
(Oct. 3), according to informed sources.

In addition, a ministerial plenary session originally slated for 6:30 p.m.
on Friday has been pushed back by at least two hours, they said. The delay
came after the U.S. and Australia engaged in ministerial-level talks this
afternoon to try to reach a deal on the duration of monopoly protection for
biologic drugs. The U.S. and Australia are expected to brief other TPP
parties on the outcome of those talks during the plenary session.

The morning deadlines for the final offers mean negotiating teams will be
working through the night to get them ready. The final exchange of offers
on Saturday morning will reveal what sources have said is an emerging deal
between the U.S. and New Zealand on dairy market access, as well as any
other bilateral agreements worked out prior to that time, according to
these sources.

Non-conforming measures (NCMs) typically refer to the exclusions countries
will take from market access commitments on services and investment, and
come in the form of a negative list. TPP countries are also negotiating a
negative list of entities that will be excluded from the disciplines on
state-owned enterprises.

No plenary meeting schedule for Saturday has been set, sources said.

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The Star Malaysia

TPP talks snagged over Malaysia’s stand on SOEs

by mergawati zulfakar, Saturday October 3, 2015

PETALING JAYA: The next 48 hours will be crucial for trade ministers
negotiating the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) in Atlanta, as some
countries are hoping to conclude negotiations to create the largest free
trade area in the world.

Malaysia, one of the 12 countries in the trade deal, made good progress on
several outstanding issues during this round, officials said.

International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed had to
leave on Thursday evening (Friday morning Malaysian time) for Milan as he
is joining Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak to visit Expo Milano –
the world’s largest exposition held every four years.

“For Malaysia, we are making good progress on issues like government
procurement and biological drugs. But on the issue of state-owned
enterprises (SOEs), we are still stuck,” a Malaysian official said.

It is understood that Mustapa met with US Trade Representative Michael
Froman twice on the sidelines of the meeting but officials are keeping mum
on what took place.

The Americans and several other TPP partners are still unhappy over
Malaysia’s stand on SOEs.

Mustapa, in an interview this week, had said that SOEs were Malaysia’s
toughest issue in the TPP negotiations as they were not just concerned over
bumiputra interests but feared they might not be covered in the deal’s
final fineprint.

He had repeatedly explained that Malaysia would not sign the deal if the
Government was not agreeable to the language of the agreement and that
Parliament would make the final decision.

Najib, in a dialogue with the US business community in New York, said that
while he was a strong supporter of the TPP and keen to remove trade
barriers, the bumiputra agenda was vital to the country.

Reuters quoted several officials as saying a final deal could come quickly
– depending on the outcome of bilateral talks on intellectual property
protection for medicine and trade in dairy and autos.

Japanese Economy Minister Akira Amari said the monopoly period for
biological drugs was the most difficult issue remaining.

TPP countries have protection periods ranging from 12 years in the United
States to five years in others, including Australia and Chile.

Arthur Stamoulis
Citizens Trade Campaign
(202) 494-8826
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