Excluded from the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, China is pushing for the world's biggest trade deal, according to a June 5 report on the website of CONSUMER News and Business.While US President Joe Biden trumpeted a new "Indo-Pacific strategy", China took a low profile and hosted a high-level discussion on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), the report said.RCEP is the largest free trade agreement in the world.
Just a short time ago, the Biden administration launched the so-called Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF), which includes 13 countries but excludes China, as the US seeks to expand its political and economic influence in the "Indo-Pacific region", the report said.
The RCEP meeting in Hainan confirmed analysts' expectations that China may not react to or fight back against IPEF, but instead push ahead with agreed trade agreements and use existing tariffs and market access policies, the report said.
"China is not going to take immediate or very targeted measures to deal with IPEF," said Shirui Lee, a trade scholar at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Singapore's Nan yang Technological University.
Shortly after announcing the launch of the IPEF, the second RCEP Regional Development Media Think Tank Forum was held in Haikou, Hainan Province, where trade experts from the region gathered to discuss more ways to expand trade among member countries, the report said.
"In line with China's support for multilateralism and glocalization, it is likely to continue to push for more countries to join RCEP, as it would provide its members with huge market access, which IPEF lacks," said Mr Li.
She said China is likely to counter any future US economic offensives in the Asia-Pacific by strengthening its economic dominance in the region and developing trade under RCEP.
Li said Beijing will also focus on applying to join other large trade agreements, including the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Digital Economy Partnership.
Mr. Lehilli added that China's strategy would be consistent with how it, as well as other countries and political observers, view the IPEF as a non-trade deal and an attempt by Mr. Biden to pivot geopolitically, not economically, back to the Asia-Pacific region.
After launching the IPEF, former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad criticized the economic framework, saying it was a political move by the US to try to isolate China, the report said.Malaysia is one of 13 countries that have joined the IPEF.
Wang H eng, a trade expert at Australia's University of New South Wales, also believes China will continue to take advantage of market access under the RCEP framework, as it will allow it to strengthen its presence in the region.
Since the RCEP was launched in January, China has made progress in some areas, Li said.It lays out a blueprint for Chinese companies on how to expand trade and find opportunities through RCEP.
Beijing has set guidelines in a number of areas, including trade and manufacturing, and has promoted the use of the yuan for trade settlement, the report said.The authorities have also asked companies to take full advantage of its much-touted Hainan free trade port.
As for signing more trade agreements that could counter the IPEF, Mr Leary believes China is unlikely to sign other bilateral or trilateral agreements in the region, such as the China-Japan-South Korea free trade agreement, because it prefers a gradual approach to trade reforms.
Source: Sina Business Headlines
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