The July Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations, which took place in Maui, have ended without a deal. This has caused many U.S. supply managers to look at ways to adjust their global sourcing strategies, as they were placing a lot of hope on the talks and the agreement they hoped would come from them.
The goal of the latest round of talks was to come to a comprehensive, high-standard trans-pacific partnership decision that will overcome some of the roadblocks faced in the past. Yet this was not the case. Still, industry leaders hope that the talks were successful in identifying areas of concern so future talks may finally lead to an agreement.
Many experts believe that this agreement is central in the push to grow U.S. manufacturing growth, bringing jobs to the industry and helping the United States remain globally competitive. This is crucial to help bring manufacturing jobs back to the United States. Currently, one out of every five jobs in the U.S. is tied to international trade, which adds up to around 38 million jobs. A Trans-Pacific Partnership could help put these jobs back in the United States..
In the latest round of talks, new challenges were presented. In order for the partnership to work, it must provide protection for intellectual property, provisions that will support e-commerce and investment protection standards. It’s also crucial that these rules and regulations can be enforced across all industries and are designed to promote manufacturing growth in the United States.
The agreement is complex and, at times, devices, but industry experts are hopeful that one will be reached soon.