Canada, Mexico eye joining U.S.-led Pacific pact, Oh wait is this going to end up being like another NAFTA?

- Canada, Mexico and at least two other countries have expressed interest in joining U.S.-led talks for a pan-Pacific trade pact, a U.S. Republican lawmaker said Friday afterJapan asked to take part.

“There’s a good deal of momentum for the TPP (Transpacific Partnership),” Representative Kevin Brady said after meetings with members of President Barack Obama’s administration at the annualAsia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum.

The Economic Committee and APEC’s independent research arm, the Policy Support Unit, conducted the interim assessment based on the World Bank’s Doing Indicators data. The assessment has been presented to APEC senior officials in Honolulu, and is available for download from the APEC website.

The APEC Economic Policy Report to be published next year will assess APEC’s full-year 2011 progress using the recently released 2011 World Bank data.

APEC has carried out capacity building projects, including workshops and seminars, to assist economies improve administrative procedures and undertake regulatory reforms in the five key areas. APEC is now implementing programs tailored to the improvement needs of individual economies, as part of efforts to meet the 2015 target.more from apec

The efforts are part of APEC’s wider strategy for structural reform that aims to achieve strong, balanced and inclusive economic growth in the region.

That momentum was evidenced by Japan’s announcement earlier Friday that it was interested in joining the talks “and what seem to be very solid inquiries from Canada, Mexico and a few others,” Brady said.

Brady said he was told the Philippines and Papua New Guinea also expressed interest in joining the negotiations that now include the United States and eight other members of APEC.

New countries joining the TPP talks would underline the importance of a regional pact as a vehicle for fostering free trade when global talks have all but failed. Japan in the TPP would create a potential market at least 40 percent larger than the 27-nation European Union.

Obama and leaders from the eight other TPP countries — Australia, New Zealand, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, Chile and Peru — will meet Saturday to discuss progress so far in the talks.more