Bangkok: Eleven Asia-Pacific nations, including Australia, agreed on Sunday to salvage a massive free trade deal that US President Donald Trump pulled out of days after taking office in January.
Australia's Trade Minister Steve Ciobo pushed for the agreement at a meeting in Vietnam to "launch a process to assess options" to bring the Trans-Pacific Partnership into force.
New Zealand Trade Minister Todd McClay, who chaired the meeting, left open the possibility of the US rejoining the TPP despite Mr Trump saying he prefers bilateral free trade deals.
Mr McClay said each country had to consider both economic values and the strategic importance of the agreement "but in the end there is a lot of unity among all of the countries and a great desire to work together to come up with an agreement."
"It's also open to other countries in the world to join if they can meet the high standards in the TPP agreement," he said.
Mr Ciobo told reporters "it's important to leave the door open to the United States."
"It may not suit US interests at this point in time to be part of the TPP but circumstances might change in the future," he said.
During his election campaign, Mr Trump vowed to scrap the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) but later backtracked, instead agreeing to renegotiate the 1994 pact.
But new US Trade representative Robert Lighthizer said the Trump administration will not reconsider its pullout.
"I believe at some point there will be a series of bilateral agreements with partners in this part of the world," Mr Lighthizer, a Reagan-era trade negotiator, told a press conference at a two-day summit of ministers from Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Hanoi.
"Bilateral negotiations are better for the United States," he said.
The TPP, which took more than five years to negotiate, covered 40 percent of the global economy before Mr Trump pulled out.
Former US president Barack Obama spearheaded the TPP as a way to counter China's regional economic dominance.
Beijing is pushing its own Asia-based free-trade pact called the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership.
Australia, New Zealand and Japan worked behind-scenes on the sidelines of the APEC meeting to convince countries like Vietnam and Malaysia to agree to revive the TPP.
Japan has the largest economy of the 11 nations which also include Chile, Canada, Mexico, Peru, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei.
Mr Ciobo tweeted the APEC summit provided "great outcomes that will continue to create trade and job opportunities for Aussies".
He also arraigned Labor for criticising the government for pursuing the TPP.
"Labor's trade policies are a shambles. Under their approach Aus would have abandoned the TPP & not have even been at the table," he tweeted.
But Reuters reported that turmoil over global trade negotiations was laid bare at the APEC summit when ministers failed to agree on their usual joint statement, after US opposition to wording on free trade and fighting protectionism.
Leaders of the 21 APEC countries, including Mr Trump and Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull are scheduled to meet in the Vietnamese town of Danang in November.
Officials from the TPP countries will meet in Japan in July and bring proposals to the November meeting.
