Monitoring the Implementation of the CPTPP’s Ecommerce Chapter: Proposed Toolkit and Initial Assessment

In 2018, 11 countries – Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam – came together to sign the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). The CPTPP, built off the original Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement, was one of the first trade agreements to include extensive, “gold-standard” provisions on ecommerce – such as rules to facilitate cross-border data flows, ban server localization, protect source code, and promote data privacy and consumer protection.

The COVID-19 pandemic has more than underscored the relevance and timeliness of the CPTPP’s e-commerce rules. Digital tools and technologies became a lifeline for many businesses, both large and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), who started using ecommerce to sell and buy goods and services across borders. The growth of online transactions is also benefiting regional payments, financial, logistics, and digital services providers. CPTPP has recently attracted potential new members – the UK, China, Taiwan, Ecuador, and, most recently, Costa Rica have requested to join.

Please join Bill Reinsch, Kati Suominen, Shujiro Urata, Jonathan McHale, and other panelists as they roll out the Scholl Chair's latest report, "Monitoring the Implementation of the CPTPP’s Ecommerce Chapter: Proposed Toolkit and Initial Assessment," that discusses the latest developments with the CPTPP's ecommerce chapter.

This event is made possible by general support to CSIS.