January 31, 2019

EU-Japan trade agreement enters into force

The Economic Partnership Agreement between the European Union (EU) and Japan enters into force on February 1, 2019 and businesses and consumers in Europe and in Japan can now take advantage of the largest open trade zone in the world.

The agreement removes the vast majority of duties paid by traders on both sides, as well as a number of long-standing regulatory barriers.

The agreement includes a comprehensive chapter on trade and sustainable development; sets very high standards of labour, safety, environmental and consumer protection; strengthens EU and Japan's commitments on sustainable development and climate change and fully safeguards public services.

It also includes a chapter on small and medium enterprises which is particularly relevant since 78% of current exporters to Japan are smaller businesses.

It will create an open trading zone covering 635 million people and almost one third of the world's total GDP.