Australia’s Economic Integration and Institutions.

Economic Integration is described as an agreement between countries to reduce or

eliminate certain trade restrictions on the exchange of goods, services, and investments. Free
trade agreements with other countries continue to give Australian businesses greater access
and opportunity. The Australian Government has now signed 17 free trade agreements with
several country markets. One of Australia’s free trade agreements are the ASEAN – Australia –
New Zealand or ANZCERTA, The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific
Partnership or CTPP, the bilateral FTA with Peru and is known as PAFTA, and lastly the world’s
largest free trade deal Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership or RCEP.

Australia’s first bilateral trade and economic relationship is with New Zealand which is
considered to be one of the broadest and most diverse FTA in the world. The FTA is named as
the Australia-New Zealand Closer Economic Relations Trade Agreement or ANZCERTA.
Australia entered and signed this agreement way back March 28, 1983. ANZCERTA was
developed to prohibit all tariffs and import or export barriers on trade in products and services.
This free trade agreement helped both countries to lower the compliance costs for industry,
lessens regulatory barriers, and provides more consumer choice. The suppliers in the Australian
industry can easily export their goods to New Zealand and vice versa. In addition to this,
ANZERTA provides mutual recognition of goods and services wherein it removes technical
barriers and trade difficulties towards the movements of the skilled worker. By means of this,
there would be no need for complete harmonization of standards and professional qualifications.
For example; a professional and qualified Australian doctor is authorized to work in New
Zealand freely with fewer restrictions

Australia has also entered the world’s largest free trade agreement namely the Regional
Comprehensive Economic Partnership or known as the RCEP which officially began in January
2022. RCEP is a regional free trade agreement that was signed by 15 Indo-Pacific countries
including Australia. The negotiation of this FTA was launched in November 2012 between
ASEAN and ASEAN’s free trade agreement alliance including Japan, New Zealand, Australia,
China, and South Korea. With the assistance of RCEP, Australian businesses now have easier
access to enhanced trade and investment laws in the rapidly growing and dynamic Indo-Pacific
region.

On February 11, 2020, Australia and Peru signed the Free Trade Agreement named
PAFTA. PAFTA aims to provide all Australian firms higher access to the Latin America Market
wherein it will increase Australia’s economic ties with Peru. PAFTA helped the Australian
economy to sell goods and services to its citizens at a reasonable cost, which means that the
country would have the ability to increase its competitiveness and provide more monitoring
systems to the Peruvian market. PAFTA gives an opportunity for the Australian mining business
to have better access to the Peruvian Market given that Peru has significant mineral
wealth.

Australia together with 10 different countries signed the free trade deal last December
30, 2018, namely the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans – Pacific
Partnership, or called CTPP on December 30, 2018. CTPP supports the rules-based trading
environment and increases better access to all exporters and investors in Australia. This free
trade deal establishes duty-free access for trade in goods among different members of the
CTPP. Canada is one of the Alliance of Australia in CTPP wherein it eliminates tariffs for the key
Canadian exports such as agricultural goods, forest and value-added wood products, plastics
and chemicals, minerals and metals, etc. The CTPP deal offers all Australian firms reduced
tariffs and in some situations, no tariffs at all.

The agreements mentioned above are already imposed which provide tariff cuts for
many Australian products and greater access to different markets that makes Australia increase
its competitiveness and global association. Australian goods and services industries benefit
from FTAs through increased growth, higher revenue, job creation, and larger profits. Free trade
agreements play an essential part in ensuring a more sustainable future and richer future that
has been benefited from increased trade and investment. ANZCERTA, CTPP, PAFTA, and
RCEP provides Australian firms greater access to international markets, reduce import costs,
and an opportunity for greater competition,