The City of Atlanta announced today that it will host a meeting of Trans-Pacific Partnership Trade Ministers from September 30 – October 1, 2015 preceded by a meeting of TPP Chief Negotiators from September 26 - 29, 2015. Trade Ministers and negotiators last met in July and have been making good progress toward resolving the limited number of outstanding issues.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership is a negotiation with 11 countries in the Asia Pacific region, including Canada and Mexico. Through the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the U.S. is renegotiating NAFTA and instituting stronger, fully enforceable labor and environmental standards. These high standards will not only bring hundreds of millions of people under enforceable labor standards and protect endangered wildlife in one of the fastest growing regions of the world—they will also help level the playing field for workers and businesses in the U.S. by ensuring our trade partners are playing by the rules.

“I am pleased that the City of Atlanta will host this meeting of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Trade Ministers,” said Mayor Kasim Reed. “No one sees the positive impacts of increased exports more clearly than cities. Atlanta has grown our economy by looking abroad to new international markets. We know that companies that export grow faster, pay higher wages, and are less likely to go out of business than companies that rely solely on the domestic market. Already more than 150,000 jobs are supported by export and import activity in the metropolitan area. We are seeing more business opportunities because of international trade, but there is still much more to be done. I am certain that the President’s trade agenda will help promote more economic success in Atlanta and Georgia, and I support his efforts to pass robust trade enforcement legislation.”