, Columnist
A Brexit Trade Deal With Asia Isn’t so Outlandish
Abe’s invitation to Britain to join the TPP-11 isn’t entirely altruistic. But no nation can afford to be an island, even after Brexit.
The barriers are going up.
Photographer: Mary Turner/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Brexiters have long claimed countries are queuing up to sign trade deals with Britain once it leaves the European Union. It’s one reason they so oppose any Brexit deal that leaves the U.K. tied to Europe’s customs union, even temporarily.
Right on cue, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told the Financial Times this week that the U.K. would be welcomed with “open arms” into the 11-member trans-Pacific trade bloc, or TPP-11. Just as the Brexit talks reach their endgame, here at last is proof of the bright economic future that awaits Britain once outside the EU, right?