The Buzz | US, 11 other countries sign free-trade deal in New Zealand

Trade ministers from 12 Pacific Rim countries including the United States gathered yesterday in New Zealand for the ceremonial signing of a free-trade deal they say will significantly boost trade.
But for the pact to take force, each country must now ratify it through its domestic political process. Whether the politically divided U.S. will agree to it remains an open question.
The agreement covers a region responsible for about one-third of all world trade, although noticeably missing from the agreement is China, which is forging ahead with its own trade deals.