The UK secured an agreement in principle with Singapore for a Digital Economy Agreement (DEA) that will cut costs, slash red tape and pave the way for a new era of trade between both nations and the wider region.
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It is the first digitally focused trade agreement ever signed by a European nation. This comprehensive digital trade deal was agreed in record time by International Trade Secretary Anne Marie Trevelyan and Singapore Minister in charge of Trade Relations S. Iswaran.
The DEA will take British trading relationship with Singapore – worth £16 billion in 2020 – to the next level by overhauling outdated trade rules that affect both goods and services exporters, making it easier for businesses to target new opportunities and build mutual prosperity in Singapore and the UK.
A third of UK exports to Singapore are already digitally delivered, and this deal will create new opportunities to expand digital trade. Services companies will be the big winners, from financial and telecoms giants like Standard Chartered or BT Group to software companies like Wales based Awen Collective.
Singaporean businesses are welcome to invest and expand into the UK, the third largest tech sector in the world by venture capital investment. It is also a magnet for global talent and investment, with the third largest number of decacorns in the world after the US and China.
UK founded tech unicorns are being created at a rate of almost one a week, and more will now be able to follow in the footsteps of companies like Revolut, Darktrace and Checkout.com who are already thriving in Singapore. Goods exporters will also benefit from streamlining border processes, while time consuming and costly paperwork will be replaced with e signatures, e contracts and electronic payments.
Singapore is a gateway to the wider Indo Pacific region and the DEA represents deepening trade ties as the UK looks to join Singapore and 10 other nations in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). Membership would mean access to a £8.4 trillion free trade area with vast opportunities for UK business.
International Trade Secretary Anne Marie Trevelyan said: "This cutting edge agreement with Singapore links two of the world’s most dynamic hi tech hubs and plays to our strengths as pioneers in digital trade. Negotiated in just six months, it is the first digital trade deal ever signed by a European nation and will slash red tape, cut costs and support well paid jobs across the whole UK.
"Digital trade is creating a new global economy, but it is still largely governed by old fashioned rules that pre date the digital revolution of the past 20 years. We’re using our independent trade policy to strike ground breaking agreements that update these rules for the digital age and connect UK businesses to the biggest and fastest growing markets in the world." ■