EU-Japan trade pact to see almost all trade barriers eliminated

The massive EU-Japan trade agreement, which has been winding through negotiations for four years, is now heading off to the EU's and Japan's respective parliaments for ratification, which is expected to go smoothly.

Under the confines of the trade agreement, Japan is set to drop 94% of trade tariffs against the EU, while the EU will be seeing an eventual elimination of 99% on imports from Japan. The process is expected to take shape over time, with the EU set to abolish tariffs on Japanese autos by the eighth year following ratification, as an example.

The EU and Japan will also be co-operating on standard-setting and regulation creation looking forward, with the two sides set to share responsibilities for overseeing trade after the trade barriers are finally removed.