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Geodis welcomes free trade deal

[ December 9, 2020   //   Chris ]

Global forwarder Geodis, has welcomed the signing of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) in the Asia Pacific region. It says it  represents a fundamental step in the development of what will become the largest international trading bloc over the next 20 years, eliminating 90% of import tariffs between the partners.

Signed at a summit in Vietnam in November, RCEP is the world’s largest trade agreement. Involving fifteen nations it will facilitate cross-border commerce among 2.2 billion people, accounting for nearly 30% of the globe’s total GDP. The signatories are Australia, Brunei, Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand and Vietnam.

Geodis APAC regional president and chief executive, Onno Boots, commented: “So many countries across the Asia Pacific region agreeing to the RCEP has significance of historic proportions. We look forward to supporting our customers in taking advantage of the emerging opportunities accruing from RCEP. The inter-state cooperation that it represents will also aid the post-Covid recovery of damaged economies.”

Regional director of customs brokerage Dr. KC Chang, added: “The agreement, when ratified will result not only in the reduction of import tariffs but will also encourage efforts to remove non-tariff barriers which will accelerate cross-border trade movement between all signatory countries and further boost economic growth.” 

Tags: Geodis