TPP talks progress in Singapore

Asia-Pacific trade ministers negotiating a huge US-led free trade area said Tuesday they were making headway but differences remain over market access. In a joint statement at the end of a four-day meeting in Singapore, the 12 prospective members of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) said they had made "further strides towards a final agreement".
"While some issues remain, we have charted a path forward to resolve them in the context of a comprehensive and balanced outcome," they said. The 12 countries -- Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the US and Vietnam -- are divided on a number of issues, including the opening up of protected domestic markets such as agriculture and automobiles, according to AFP.