US president Donald Trump has wasted no time taking action to back up his election pledges. 

 

He already has started to dismantle the US healthcare program known as Obamacare and promised "much more" in the weeks ahead.

For the travel industry, though, the news is uncertain.

 

For business and leisure travellers as well as airlines and cruise companies, the promise to consider imposing new travel restrictions on Cuba based on its human rights record is notable, while his promise to 'dump' the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) will have a global impact on business and business travel.

 

The TPP participants (so far) are the US, Japan, Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore, Brunei, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Mexico, Chile and Peru and Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe has said that without the USA, the TPP is "meaningless".

 

The TPP, which needs all signatories to ratify it, covers an estimated 40 per cent of the world's economy. Its opponents say it's a secretive deal that favours big business and other countries at the expense of jobs and national sovereignty in the US. Trump, an avowed 'America first' campaigner, agrees with them.

 

The TPP pact aims to slash tariffs and foster trade and to create a new single market, something like the European Union, but twice as large with a combined population of 800 million.

 

In total, about 18,000 tariffs are covered by the TPP, including on agricultural products and industrial goods and under the agreement, tariffs on US manufactured goods and almost all US farm products would be eliminated almost immediately.

 

The biggest criticism of the pact came from those who alleged secretive negotiations, in which governments were said to be seeking to bring in sweeping changes without voters' knowledge.