Editor's Pick: Did India miss the bus on RCEP?

The Hindu Newsletter - Newsletter - subject [The Hindu Logo]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Youtube]( [Linkedin]( [Instagram]( Monday 16, November 2020 [alt_text]( Editor's Pick [Did India miss the bus on RCEP?]( [alt_text]( (The Editor's Pick is a new newsletter from The Hindu that provides a snapshot of the most important stories from today's edition of our newspaper, along with a note from our top editors on why we chose to give prominence to these stories.) One of the world's largest trade blocs have been formalised with the 10 ASEAN countries signing the [Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership deal](with China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. The deal that covers 2.1 billion people and 30% of the global GDP, is centered around China. It will allow partner countries to trade at much lower tariffs and work with uniform policies. India, which had been a part of the negotiations for the deal when it began in 2012, [exited it abruptly in 2019]( stating that its concerns were not addressed. The RCEP has left a window open for India to rejoin if it intends to do so. India's primary concern had been that joining this deal would lead to [Chinese goods flooding the domestic market](once tariffs are lowered on about 80% of the imports. Lowering tariffs would also exacerbate the trade deficits India has with 11 of the 15 countries. Another complaint was that the grouping had not been receptive on allowing the flow of Indian labour for services, a key sector for the country. There was also domestic opposition to the deal over fears that it would adversely affect the Indian agricultural and dairy sectors. While India may have evaded some of the geo-economical issues by stepping away from the deal, there are geo-political issues that remain. The RCEP will cement China's clout in the Asia-Pacific. The Trans-Pacific Partnership that the U.S. had groomed with 10 of the countries under the Obama administration as a counter to the RCEP, was ditched under the Trump administration. Australia and Japan, whom the[U.S. and India had partnered in the Quad]( as a counter to China in the region, are also part of the RCEP. However, India's absence may also be sorely felt by the RCEP countries other than China as it would have been the third-largest economy, bringing in a large market and a counterweight to China. This interplay of geo-economical and geo-political issues is what makes this story important. The Big Story [China-led mega trade bloc RCEP takes off]( [alt_text]( From the Front Page [alt_text]( [Nitish Kumar to take oath as Bihar CM on November 16]( [alt_text]( [India reiterates Pakistani involvement in terrorism]( From the Opinion Pages [alt_text]( [Protect our Republic, my lords]( [alt_text]( [U.S. Progressives in the cross hairs]( Today's Editorials [Border on the boil: On Pakistan]( ceasefire violation [Suu Kyi again: On Myanmar polls]( You are receiving this email because you are a user of [thehindu.com]( If you do not wish to receive any such emails, [unsubscribe here.](mailto:rm-0b48cbeybf2f90kaup33rtbysa8hkt3@newsalert.thehindu.com?subject=Unsubscribe&body=You will be unsubscribed from our mailing list.) To ensure you continue to receive emails from The Hindu in your inbox, please add newsletters.th@newsalert.thehindu.com to your contact. If you can't see the mailer, please [click here.]( Group Sites [The Hindu]( | [இந்து தமிழ் திசை]( | [Business Line]( | [BL on Campus]( | [Sportstar]( | [Frontline]( | [The Hindu Centre]( | [Images]( | [roofandfloor]( | [Classifieds]( Copyright @ 2020 ,THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD. [About Us]( | [Contact Us]( | [Digital Subscription](