Trade Minister David Parker puts digital signature to digital services trade deal with Singapore and Chile

Trade Minister David Parker signed the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement, a new agreement with Chile and Singapore, on Friday. Photo / Kevin Stent

Trade Minister David Parker has put a digital signature to New Zealand's first trade agreement focused solely on the digital economy.

Ministers from New Zealand, Chile and Singapore signed up to the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement (DEPA) in an online ceremony this morning.

"Covid-19 has required us all to find new ways of working, and signing trade agreements is no different," Parker said in a video posted on his Twitter account.

"Responding to Covid-19 has underlined the importance of digital tools, and digital trade, to ensure New Zealand can continue to prosper and recover quickly from the global pandemic," he said.

"Digital technologies can help small and medium-sized enterprises overcome the challenges of scale and distance and support greater participation by women, Māori and rural communities, to help spread the benefits of trade widely."

Negotiations for the agreement began in May last year and moved quickly because the law had not kept up with the growth in digital trade, Parker said.

"We believe small countries – not just large ones – should help shape the new rules."

It is hoped that other countries will sign up to the agreement.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs pointed to the earlier P4 agreement, signed between New Zealand, Chile Singapore and Brunei, which "set the scene" for the much wider TPP negotiations and eventually the CPTPP agreement, an 11-country agreement signed by countries representing more than 13 per cent of the global economy.

Parker said the agreement covers business and trade facilitation measures, such as setting up faster Customs procedures and supporting e-payments, and issues of consumer trust.

"It will promote online consumer protection and address emerging trends and technologies, such as financial technology and digital identities," he said.

The agreement could come into effect before the end of the year.