March, 2019. Atlanta, United States. CMX Partnerships Director and principal researcher, Mr. Juan Navarro, was chosen by the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) to complete one of their most important research projects for 2019. This research aimed to provide deep analysis of six of the most important next generation trade and investment issues (NGeTI) currently affecting business, namely, state-owned enterprises (SOEs), electronic commerce, intellectual property rights (IPRs), transparency, competition and cross-border trade in services. Navarro did a comparative analysis of these trade and investment issues in the context of three relevant regional economic trade agreements occurring in the Asia Pacific: the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), the Pacific Alliance (PA), and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).
Navarro has been working on this research during the last eight months and he presented the results to the business leaders from the 21 economies that are part of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) during the first ABAC meeting of 2019 carried out in Atlanta on March 3, 2019. During his presentation Navarro mentioned that as the advancement of the digital economy evolves in every aspect of business, the issues defined as NGeTI have increased in relevance and visibility. He added that to respond to emerging demands and challenges in business, NGeTI need to be identified and addressed to articulate in consistent rules for trade and investment.
This is the second time Navarro has completed a research project for ABAC; the first was in 2016 when he completed an analysis on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the Pacific Alliance (PA) where he stressed out these two agreements meant not only two pathways toward higher regional economic integration in the region, but also complementary agreements that could contribute to the creation of the eventual realization of the Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific (FTAAP).
The final report submitted by our Director to ABAC leaders will be released in the next weeks and is expected to be widely shared in the Asia Pacific region.
