HillNote
On 15 November 2020, 15 countries signed the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), a regional trade agreement between Australia, China, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea, as well as the 10 Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member countries: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. RCEP negotiations were launched in 2012 by the above 15 countries as well as India; however, India announced its withdrawal from RCEP in 2019 after the Indian Prime Minister said that some of the country’s concerns had not been considered in the agreement.If implemented, RCEP would form the biggest free trade zone in terms of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), larger than the Canada–U.S.–Mexico Agreement and European Union (EU) Single Market zones.