RCEP implementation yields positive outcomes For Asean trade, investment
1.
The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) has garnered substantial attention since its inception. Despite navigating a challenging journey and a turbulent global economic landscape, the implementation of RCEP has started to yield positive results, providing crucial certainty in uncertain times.
The future of RCEP looks promising, with strong expectations for promoting ASEAN-led regional economic integration.
An Assessment Report based on relevant data offers a preliminary analysis of RCEP’s progress since its official implementation in 2022 and provides recommendations for maximizing its benefits.
Overall Assessments
First, RCEP’s dividends have started to be unleashed. Taking trade and investment as an example, the effect of RCEP’s implementation on driving regional trade and investment growth has begun to appear, with its trade promotion effects on ASEAN members more obvious.
Second, some members’ utilisation rate of RCEP rules needs improvement. Currently, some members’ low utilization of RCEP rules is a salient issue facing the comprehensive implementation of RCEP.
Third, RCEP has enormous potential dividends. There is huge room for unleashing the benefits of RCEP in areas such as trade and investment, utilisation of rules by enterprises, and policy implementation.
Fourth, RCEP’s dividends can be fully released by giving priority to raising the utilisation rate of its rules. Utilisation of Rules of Origin (RoO) is the foundation and strut for releasing the benefits of any free trade agreement. Improving the utilisation rate of RCEP’s rules of origin will help create a new pattern of sharing dividends and jointly promoting development in the RCEP region.
Progress: RCEP’s Dividends Have Started to be Unleashed
RCEP’s implementation propelled rapid growth in intra-regional trade. In 2022, the quantity of intra-regional trade of all 15 RCEP members significantly increased, with 10 members achieving double-digit growth. RCEP’s trade promotion effect on ASEAN countries, particularly on its less developed economies, is generally greater than that on other RCEP members. In addition, in 2022 and 2023, the proportion of trade of most members with ASEAN countries in their total intra-regional trade was higher than that in 2021.
