The term “mega deal” has been widely used in relation to two large prospective trade deals between the United States and Europe — the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership — and between Asia and the Pacific — the Trans-Pacific Partnership. This paper, authored by Chungding Li, Jing Wang and John Whalley, explores a possible description of mega deals by making an inventory of current deals in place, under discussion or negotiation, and deals yet to be considered. The paper also examines China’s situation regarding deals that may include or exclude the country by looking at descriptive analysis and summarized general equilibrium modelling calculations on the potential impact of these deals — these consistently show that the access benefits from mega deal negotiations may be essential for China’s security in market access. The authors conclude that China will be driven to engage in its own mega trade deals by the need to compete in the global trade system. China can influence the future development of the trading system by its stance toward mega deals, and mega deals would most likely shape the future of China’s economy.
