Japan and the European Union signed a trade agreement last week in Tokyo that lowers barriers on the movement of goods and services between the two economies. This creates one of the world’s largest liberalised trade zones.
The Economic Partnership Agreement will remove a wide range of duties and regulatory obstacles between the EU and Japan, helping Japanese car exports and making it easier for European farmers to sell their produce in the Asian nation. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and European Council President Donald Tusk signed the pact.
The deal, which had been under negotiation since 2013, was awaited for some time, following CETA, concluded by the EU with Canada in 2016-7.
It is worthy to note that the deal, contrary to CETA, does not provide an investor-state dispute resolution system. It is expected to keep potential disputes in national courts or to design an ISDS system in a separate agreement in the future.
The Japan-EU trade agreement is expected to boost Japan’s economy by about 1 percent (approx. USD 44 billion), and add roughly 290,000 jobs in the nation, according to Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The EU will benefit mainly from importing goods in Japan, including electronic devices and cars, while exporting food products. A 10% import duty on cars from Japan will be phased out over the next eight years after the deal takes effect, the ministry said.
Back to list
Read also
April 25, 2024
If you’re a small business owner in Poland, you should not worry too much about the new guidelines issues on 9 April 2024 by the Polish Office...
Read more
April 22, 2024
The business structure you choose influences everything from day-to-day operations, to taxes and how much of your personal assets are at risk....
Read more
March 28, 2024
Wozniak Legal is pleased to share that The Legal 500 Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) 2024 edition has recognized our firm for legal...
Read more