with the presidential election now over, the u.s. needs to take immediate steps to salvage the trans-pacific partnership and prevent the harm to its economic and strategic interests that would result from the deal<u+2019>s rejection. president-elect donald trump should rethink his opposition to tpp. the stakes for the u.s. economy could not be larger. american companies and their products are increasingly at risk of being shut out of asia<u+2019>s growing markets as chinese companies, supported aggressively by the chinese government, are taking dominant positions in the world<u+2019>s most economically dynamic region. china has been negotiating its own trade deals in asia, including the regional comprehensive economic partnership, that exclude the u.s. to sustain their competitiveness and employment at home, american companies must be able to compete on a level playing field in asia. without the tpp, china and others are likely to dominate this critical region. our allies in the region are sounding the alarm, but too many american policy makers are not listening. there is now deep concern over the sustainability of america<u+2019>s commitment to the region, and whether the u.s. is a reliable commercial and strategic ally. the american chamber of commerce in china conducted a survey of its membership on the strategic and tactical importance of tpp. here are the results on five key questions: <u+2022> 90% said that tpp will provide the united states with the ability to more effectively influence the rules of trade with china in the future. <u+2022> 88% said that tpp will set high-standard trade norms for the apec region that may encourage china to liberalize its markets, treat foreign companies fairly, and adhere more closely to rule of law principles. <u+2022> 84% said that the trade rules embodied in tpp would encourage progress in the ongoing economic reforms prioritized by the chinese government; namely, if china wants to be part of tpp in the future as they have publicly expressed, the chinese government needs to make progress on economic reforms. <u+2022> 80% said that tpp would help countries like china to better discipline state-owned enterprises. <u+2022> 83% said that tpp will provide washington with the leverage needed to conclude a high-standard, comprehensive u.s.-china bilateral investment treaty. amcham china members believe that the passage of tpp will give us tactical leverage over the world<u+2019>s second-largest economy that sometimes doesn<u+2019>t play by the rules of the game. the strategic value of ttp is thus about much more than just protecting our friends in asia. rather, it<u+2019>s about maintaining influence and driving the trade agenda. our members also view tpp as setting a high bar in the apec region that will energize china to liberalize its markets and treat foreign companies on an equal basis with domestic firms. the china market is supposed to be fully open but it<u+2019>s not, while chinese companies have near-unfettered access to u.s. markets. china continues to shield sensitive sectors from foreign competition and significant market access reforms are required. we also view tpp as setting high standards for rule of law principles such as fairness in the regulatory process, uniformity in application of the laws, and transparency in the licensing and rule-making process. china needs to strengthen the legal and judicial system to provide more certainty for both domestic and foreign companies operating. the amcham china survey results send a clear message to the incoming trump administration from a vast majority of american companies operating on the front lines in china. the tpp is essential to america<u+2019>s continued global leadership, and its rejection would harm u.s. interests. mr. zimmerman is an american lawyer in beijing and the chairman of the american chamber of commerce in china.
the pacific trade deal is essential to u.s. interests - wsj
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