Biden's Asian economic plan has no tariff benefits for Malaysia; excludes China

The White House says the deal offers no tariff relief to the countries that join, including India, Malaysia and the Philippines, but provides a way to sort through issues ranging from climate change to supply chain resilience and digital trade.

TOKYO: President Joe Biden launched his plan for U.S. economic engagement in Asia on Monday, leaving it to the 13 founding countries to work out how to enforce their agreements and whether China could ever join.

Biden chose on his first trip in office to Asia to formally unveil the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF), although critics said it offered scant benefit to countries in the region even before it was announced.