How BC will go forward as the US moves away from TPP

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WASHINGTON, DC. (NEWS 1130) – In one of his first official moves, US President Donald Trump signed a memorandum to leave the proposed Pacific Rim trade pact known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

The move is basically a formality, since the agreement hasn’t been ratified by the Senate yet, which is required. Trade experts say the approval is unlikely to happen given voters’ anxiety about trade deals and the potential for job losses.

At a news conference in North Vancouver this morning to talk about BC’s five-year jobs plan, Premier Christy Clark addressed the move. “Diversification of our economy and diversification of our markets are the two key features of staying ahead in a very rapidly changing global environment for trade.”

She touted recent trips overseas as beneficial for the province’s economy.

“Back in the days when our only customer for lumber was pretty much the United States — we were at their mercy when it came to trade. [But] we’ve grown our trade with China and lumber by over 1,000 per cent. Somewhere between 40 to 50 per cent of our trade balance doesn’t go south of the border anymore. That’s how we protect ourselves from protectionist regimes from countries all around the world. And diversifying our economy as well — I think the focus that we’re putting on technology means that you are going to see more and more new ideas creating businesses and jobs in the province that are going to mean we lead in these areas.”

Clark feels putting BC at the front of the pack on a global scale will bring more business to this side of the country. “Part of winning global markets is producing the best, most innovative new products that markets need. If they can get them here in British Columbia, they’ll buy them here in BC and that’ll mean we’re creating more jobs right here.”

Clark says over 191,000 new jobs have been created in BC since 2011, and that over 80 per cent of them are full-time positions. She adds BC now has the lowest unemployment rate in the country at 5.8 per cent.

Looking ahead, Clark is promising to focus on rural communities by supporting infrastructure projects, and the creation of a rural tech sector.

It remains unclear if Trump would seek individual deals with the 11 other nations in TPP — a group that represents roughly 13.5 per cent of the global economy, according to World Bank figures.

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