The UK has struck a trade deal to join a major trans-Pacific partnership, calling it its “biggest” trade deal since Brexit. The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) is a free trade area of 11 countries – including Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam. The agreement for the UK to join the bloc follows almost two years of “intense” negotiations by the Department of Business and Trade, said a government statement. With the agreement, the UK has become its first European member. The bloc is home to more than 500 million people and will be worth 15% of global GDP once the UK joins, and will have a total GDP of £11 trillion, the statement said. Joining the bloc is estimated to boost the British economy by £1.8 billion ($2.2 billion) in the long run, with wages also forecast to increase by £800 million compared to 2019 levels. “More than 99 percent of UK goods exports to CPTPP countries will now be eligible for zero tariffs,” the statement said, adding that total UK exports to CPTPP countries were already worth £60.5 billion in the 12 months to the end of September 2022. “We are at our heart an open and free-trading nation, and this deal demonstrates the real economic benefits of our post-Brexit freedoms. As part of CPTPP, the UK is now in a prime position in the global economy to seize opportunities for new jobs, growth and innovation,” British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said. “Joining the CPTPP trade bloc puts the UK at the centre of a dynamic and growing group of Pacific economies, as the first new nation and first European country to join. British businesses will now enjoy unparalleled access to markets from Europe to the south Pacific,” he added. UK’s Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch said that this is an “important moment” for the UK. “Our accession to CPTPP sends a powerful signal that the UK is open for business and using our post-Brexit freedoms to reach out to new markets around the world and grow our economy,” she said.