Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement [APTA]

Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA) is a preferential trade arrangement between Asian-Pacific countries that promotes trade expansion in the region. The member countries of the Asia Pacific Region are focused on economic development through collaboration and cooperation. Until 2 November 2005, the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement was known as the Bangkok Agreement.

The member nations of APTA are India, Bangladesh, China, the Republic of Korea, Sri Lanka, Laos and Mongolia. In this article, we have shared further information about the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement, its history and its importance.

Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement: Overview

The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and Pacific (UNESCAP) initiated the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement, formerly known as the Bangkok Agreement. The five countries, including Bangladesh, India, Laos, Sri Lanka, and the Republic of Korea, are original members that signed APTA in 1957.

In 2001, China also signed the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA). Later, Mongolia also became a part of the agreement in 2020. Find more information about this preferential trade agreement in the table shared below.

Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement Members Countries

Initially, only five countries were part of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement but later two more countries joined this agreement. The current membership of the APTA includes the following seven countries.

• India
• Lao People's Democratic Republic
• Bangladesh
• Sri Lanka
• Republic of Korea
• The People's Republic of China
• Mongolia

APTA Organisational Structure

The organisational structure of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement is as follows

• Ministerial Council: The Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement holds meetings once every two years.
• Standing Committee: It administers the trade agreement.
• Secretariat: TIID of UNESCO serves as the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement Secretariat.

APTA: History

The Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement is the oldest and longest operational trade agreement between several nations of the Asia-Pacific Region. India, Bangladesh, the Republic of Korea, Lao PDR, and Sri Lanka first signed the Bangkok Agreement in 1975. Later, China and Mongolia joined in 2001 and 2020, respectively.

• The members renamed the Bangkok Agreement to Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement in 2005.
• The first Ministerial Council of APTA assembled in Beijing, China, in the same year.
• UNESCAP held the second meeting in Goa, India, in 2007, and the third meeting in Seoul, South Korea, after two years of the second meeting.
• The UNESCAP held the fourth Ministerial meeting of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement in Bangkok, Thailand, in 2017.
• In 2018, the participating members of APTA established working groups on services, investment, and trade facilitation.

Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement: Objectives

The main objective of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement is to boost the economic development of its participating countries. The Asian-Pacific region is underdeveloped and through mutual cooperation, this region can develop much faster.

The Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement also functions to liberalize trade and investment that help nations strengthen their economies through inter-regional trade. Besides this, APTA also has a significant goal of reducing the tariff commission and providing coverage of merchandise, goods, commodities, investments, and technology.

Significance of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement

There are many reasons why the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement is considered so significant and some of them are given below.

• The Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement is the only trade agreement that links India and China directly, making it an important trade agreement.
• The Indian Trade Service officers formulated and implemented policies regarding such preferential trade agreements.
• All India and Central Services such as IRS, IAS, and IFS help Indian Trade Service officers supervise trade and export administration activities.
• The Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement is an important preferential trade agreement in which the TIID of UNESCAP acts as its Secretariat.
• The APTA trade agreement is not a full-fledged free trade agreement since it covers only specific tariff lines.
• The Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement connects countries from this region and encourages them to cooperate for mutual benefit.

FAQs on Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement

Q1. What is the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA)?

The Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA) is a preferential trade arrangement that works to promote trade expansion between member countries. APTA works by the exchange of mutually agreed tariff concessions by the member countries of the Asia-Pacific Region.

Q2. Which countries are a part of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement?

Seven countries, including Bangladesh, India, Lao DPR, Sri Lanka, China, Mongolia and the Republic of Korea, are members of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement. These countries signed APTA to work together for the development of the Asia-Pacific region.

Q3. Why is the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement important?

The Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement is considered important because it is the only trade agreement that links India and China directly. It is also an agreement that was signed by the member countries so that the development of the Asia-Pacific region can be boosted.

Q4. Which are the new members of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement?

The new members of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement are China and Mongolia. In 2001, China also participated in the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement. Mongolia is the newest APTA member and signed the agreement in 2020.

Q5. What is the main role of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement APTA?

The main role of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement is to boost the economic development of its participating countries. The participating countries, India, Bangladesh, China, Mongolia, Laos, Korea and Sri Lanka cooperate to ensure the growth of the entire Asia-Pacific region.