Trans-Pacific trade talks set to resume, says US envoy

Negotiations resume next week on a trans-Pacific trade deal to better integrate small and medium-sized businesses into the global economy, the deputy US trade representative said Thursday.
Talks are to continue in San Francisco on the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) that would link the United States with an initial group of seven nations -- Australia, Brunei, Chile, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.
It is part of US President Barack Obama's goal of doubling exports in five years and seeks, analysts say, to address US fears of being sidelined by a growing web of Asia-centric trade pacts.
By working to help increase the role of small and medium-size enterprises through the TPP "we will be able to better integrate... (them) into global trade" and help increase their exports, Demetrios Marantis told reporters.
He said the TPP also aims to reduce "supply-chain obstacles" in the region.