Why Obama says TPP is historic for workers — and why US labor unions hate it

The Obama administration is crowing about the labor protections in the Trans-Pacific Partnership — the full text of which were finally released last week.

"TPP has the strongest protections for workers of any trade agreement in history," the administration claims in its introduction to its labor chapter. Officials say they've made huge strides for workers abroad — particularly in getting Vietnam's repressive government to agree to recognize workers' rights and allow independent unions, and Malaysia's government to agree to reforms aimed at preventing forced labor.

MALAYSIA:::Malaysia’s growth slows as GST weighs on spending

Malaysia’s economy expanded at the slowest pace in more than two years as private consumption eased, adding pressure on policy makers to bolster growth and boost confidence.

Gross domestic product rose 4.7 per cent in the three months through September from a year earlier, after climbing 4.9 per cent in the previous quarter, the central bank said in Kuala Lumpur today. That matched the median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey.