TOKYO -- The Dec. 30 implementation of the 11-member Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact ushers in a new era with nearly 40% of global gross domestic product under multilateral free trade agreements, standing in sharp contrast to the trade war in which America and China are mired.
The so-called TPP-11 will virtually eliminate tariffs eventually throughout the Pacific Rim community. For member nations, all Japanese tariffs on industrial goods will be eliminated, as will 82.3% of tariffs on farm, forestry and fishery products.
