Donald Trump's announcement that he would quit the Trans-Pacific Partnership on day one of his tenure as US President is not surprising but still a huge disappointment say business leaders.
The President-elect today released a video laying out actions he'll take on his first day in office on January 20, including withdrawing the US from the TTP trade deal.
"This is an absolute blow," said Business NZ chief executive Kirk Hope. "This deal took a very long time and was very complex so it's very disappointing."
Hope said Business NZ would be working to negotiate a bilateral trade deal with the US "quite rapidly".
"Trump has said he is open to high-quality bilateral deals, but the challenge is to define what high quality looks like for New Zealand," he said.