TOKYO (Sputnik) — Japan's House of Representatives, the lower house of parliament, voted to ratify the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement on Thursday, local media reported.
According to the Kyodo news agency, the House of Councilors, which is the upper house, is expected to schedule a respective plenary session for Friday.
The ratification, initially scheduled for November 4, was postponed because of the boycott by the opposition, but the control of the ruling coalition, headed by the Liberal Democratic Party, over the majority of seats secured ratification of the deal.
In early September, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe vowed to press the parliament into ratifying the agreement.
The TPP agreement seeks to deregulate trade among 12 signatory nations that comprise 40 percent of the world economy. They include the United States, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.
