High hopes voiced as key trade pact takes effect

Economic integration

Wang Tuo, a researcher at the Institute of International Trade in Services, said the agreement will better allocate resources in the region－eventually creating more market potential for the partnership's members and strengthening regional economic and trade ties.

Cui, from UIBE, said, "The RCEP will strengthen integration of regional industrial, supply and value chains, and accelerate regional economic integration－injecting new impetus to regional and global economic recovery."

Chris Cai, general manager of Four Seas (Guangzhou) Food Import and Export Trading Co, said the pact will significantly benefit the company in at least two respects－reduced tariffs and increased market access.

A subsidiary of Four Seas Mercantile Holdings, an investment holding company based in Hong Kong mainly engaged in the food sector, Cai's business has food factories on the Chinese mainland and in Japan. It imports prepackaged snacks, and beverages and food materials from Japan and Southeast Asian countries such as Thailand and Indonesia, and exports food products to Japan.

Cai said, "As we both import and export, the reductions in tariffs are quite considerable for us, while the simplified customs procedures in the region after the pact takes effect mean reduced costs for the business."

She expects the company to increase its presence in the region, as it will be able to use its trade experience to introduce more products to China from Japan and ASEAN member states.

Thanks to the agreement, producers in the region will have more opportunities to sell products to each other, she added.

Moreover, Cai said strengthened cooperation on industrial and supply chains in the region will reduce costs for enterprises and improve productivity, adding that for consumers, this means more product options and cheaper prices.

Zhan Linchang, general manager of the purchasing department and new model propulsion at GAC Mitsubishi Motors Co in Changsha, Hunan province, said the company will save more than 2.73 million yuan ($429,000) this year due to reduced tariffs on imported components such as hydraulic valves and windshield washer motors. These tariffs will gradually be reduced to zero.

The RCEP rules of origin and other arrangements for trade liberalization and facilitation mean that regional industrial and supply chains will be deeply integrated, boosting exports and imports of related products such as raw materials, key components and completed products and devices, Zhan said.