Malaysia joins six countries to ratify UK's accession into CPTPP

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has officially ratified the United Kingdom's (UK) accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), a significant milestone as it is effectively Malaysia's first bilateral free trade agreement with the UK.

In a statement today, the Investment, Trade and Industry Ministry (MITI) said Malaysia joins Japan, Singapore, Chile, New Zealand, Vietnam, and Peru in the ratification process.

The UK's entry into the CPTPP will swell the combined gross domestic product (GDP) value of the bloc to US$15.4 trillion, or 15 per cent of the global GDP.

MITI said the ratification allows Malaysian exports to benefit from immediate duty-free treatment on 94 per cent of tariff lines, particularly for palm oil, cocoa, rubber, electric and electronics, chemicals as well as machinery and equipment.

The agreement is expected to enter into force by end-2024 for the UK and the countries that have ratified it.

Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Aziz said Malaysia is pleased to welcome the UK into the CPTPP "family".

"As Malaysia's first bilateral free trade agreement with the UK, we are confident of better access for Malaysian exports to the UK, whose economy breached US$4 trillion in 2023," he said.

He noted that Malaysia's participation in the CPTPP, regarded as the gold standard for trade agreements, will significantly improve the country's competitiveness.

It will also foster investor confidence and cultivate a deeper integration into the global supply chain for Malaysian exporters.

The CPTPP members are Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam, MITI said.

-- BERNAMA

Read the latest news here