On January 1, 2022, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) officially came into effect. Customs across the country are busy, from Nanjing Customs issuing the first RCEP declaration of origin to Qingdao Customs issuing the country’s first RCEP certificate of origin…the free trade zone with the largest population, largest economic and trade scale, and the most development potential in the world Officially set sail.
According to information on the website of the Ministry of Commerce, RCEP has taken the lead in taking effect in the 10 countries that have officially submitted approval documents, namely the 6 ASEAN member states of Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam and the 4 non-ASEAN members of China, Japan, New Zealand, and Australia. member states. South Korea will join the implementation on February 1. The remaining member states will also gradually take effect after completing their domestic approval procedures. RCEP has a total of 15 member countries, including China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, and 10 ASEAN countries.
In an interview with a reporter from the Economic Daily, many experts believed that the implementation of RCEP will help reduce the institutional transaction costs of trade and investment in East Asia, inject new impetus for development into the regional and even world economies, and will become an important platform for my country to build a new development pattern. , to further promote my country’s institutional opening up in areas such as rules, regulations, management, and standards.
Yuan Bo, deputy director and researcher of the Asia Research Institute of the Institute of International Trade and Economic Cooperation of the Ministry of Commerce, told China Business News, “After the RCEP was reached, among members that had no previous free trade agreement arrangements and relatively high levels of tariff barriers,” The trade creation effect will be more obvious.”
The Institute of International Trade and Economic Cooperation of the Ministry of Commerce recently released the “RCEP Impact Assessment Report on the Regional Economy”, which shows that by 2035, RCEP will drive the region’s overall actual gross domestic product, exports and imports to increase by 0.86% cumulatively compared with the baseline scenario. , 18.30% and 9.63%, the cumulative incremental scale of exports and imports will reach US$857.1 billion and US$983.7 billion respectively. At the global level, by 2035, RCEP will drive world real GDP and import and export trade to increase by 0.12% and 2.91% respectively compared with the baseline scenario.
RCEP is the largest free trade agreement in the world so far. Its total population, economic volume, and total trade volume all account for 1/3 of the global total. The agreement covers a wide range of tariff reductions, trade facilitation, service investment opening, and intellectual property protection. field.
It is understood that in terms of market opening, the immediate zero-tariff ratio between my country and ASEAN, Australia and New Zealand exceeds 65%. The direct zero-tariff ratio between my country and South Korea is 39% and 50%. A large number of immediate zero-tariff products will bring opportunities for trade development. On this basis, RCEP members will basically achieve zero tariffs on 90% of their products in about 10 years.
Among the countries that have taken effect, China and Japan reached a bilateral tariff reduction arrangement for the first time through the RCEP agreement, achieving a historic breakthrough. Vice Minister of Commerce Ren Hongbin said at the previous briefing of the State Council Information Office that China and Japan have reached a free trade arrangement for the first time. The two sides have significantly reduced tariffs on each other in many fields such as machinery and equipment, electronic information, chemicals, light industry and textiles, especially in 2022. In 2019, 57% of my country’s exports to Japan will immediately achieve zero tariffs, which will have a significant promotion effect on trade.
According to data from the Ministry of Commerce, China and Japan have newly established free trade relations, and the proportion of direct zero tariffs between each other will reach 25% and 57% respectively. Eventually, 86% of Japanese products exported to China will achieve zero tariffs, and 88% of Chinese products exported to Japan will enjoy zero tariff treatment. Ren Hongbin recently stated at a press conference of the State Council Information Office that the implementation of RCEP is a “new milestone” in China’s opening up to the outside world. It will become a link and bridge for China to connect the domestic and international dual cycles, making the two domestic and international markets and two resources more closely connected.
As the connection point between the “Belt and Road Initiative” and the Yangtze River Economic Belt, Chongqing has unique geographical advantages in deepening cooperation with RCEP member states. The relevant person in charge of the Chongqing Municipal Commerce Commission introduced that Chongqing will further build a high-level RCEP docking platform, build a RCEP economic and trade cooperation pioneer zone, and strive to play the demonstration and pioneer role of the China-Singapore interconnection project and the city’s six comprehensive bonded zones; it will build China Unicom RCEP An international logistics hub, build a logistics distribution center for RCEP member countries in western China; accelerate connectivity with RCEP member states in the aviation and railway fields, and enhance trade distribution capabilities with RCEP countries.
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