The Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) between mainland China (Mainland) and Hong Kong, and the Cross-Straits Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) between the Mainland and Taiwan, are landmarks in the history of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs). This paper covers the events leading to the CEPA and ECFA, and their provisions on access to markets for goods and for services. In this paper the economic impact of the two agreements on trade in goods, services, and investments among the three economies are analyzed, as are the effects of the ECFA on Hong Kong’s position as an intermediary in cross-strait trade, investment, shipping, and passenger traffic. The CEPA and ECFA are compared in terms of legal issues such as intellectual property rights protections, dispute settlement mechanisms, and compliance with the WTO framework. The paper concludes with a study of the impact of the two agreements on the formation of FTAs in the Asia-Pacific region in the context of the competition between the US-backed Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the China-backed Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) as possible paths to Asian-Pacific economic integration.

比較CEPA及EFCA: 亞太區經濟整合

中國內地與香港之《關於建立更緊密經貿關係的安排》（CEPA）及內地與台灣之《海峽兩岸經濟合作架構協議》（ECFA）為自由貿易協議歷史的里程碑。本文考察 CEPA 及 ECFA 兩個協議的源起、對商品及服務市場准入的規定、對兩岸三地商品及服務貿易及投資的影響，並分析 ECFA 如何影響香港作為兩岸商貿中介的地位。本文比較 CEPA 及 ECFA 有關法律方面的問題，包括知識產權保護、爭端解決機制，以及是否符合世界貿易組織的框架。最後，本文概述中、美兩國在亞太區經濟整合中的競爭 — 美國支持《跨太平洋夥伴協定》（TPP）而中國則支持《區域全面經濟夥伴關係協定》（RCEP），並從這個角度分析 CEPA 及 ECFA 對亞太區經濟整合的影響。