APEC countries are close to agreeing a joint trade declaration at their annual summit in South Korea, the host’s foreign minister has said, following U.S. President Donald Trump’s early exit.
Members of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum are nearing agreement on a joint declaration addressing trade and global economic concerns, South Korea’s Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said on Thursday, ahead of the summit’s formal opening on Friday in Gyeongju.
“We are very close,” Cho told reporters after chairing a ministerial meeting. While talks continued over the wording of both the ministerial and leaders’ declarations, he said he was hopeful a final statement would be adopted by the time the summit concludes on Saturday.
The 21-member APEC forum is a non-binding grouping that accounts for 50 % of global trade and 61 % of the world’s GDP. This year’s meeting has been shaped by tensions over protectionist policies, with several nations raising concerns about non-tariff barriers and fragile supply chains.
U.S. President Donald Trump departed South Korea on Thursday after finalising a trade deal with China and formalising a tariff agreement with Seoul a day earlier. His latest agreements follow a string of side-line deals made during a Southeast Asia summit in Malaysia earlier in the week.
“It is in line with our interest for the U.S. and China to find a balance and stabilise supply chains and other issues,” South Korea’s Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo said at the joint briefing, calling both countries “our biggest trading partners.”
Yeo noted that most APEC members recognised ongoing challenges in the form of protectionism, non-tariff barriers and broader geopolitical uncertainties.
Cho added that tariffs were only part of the problem undermining the global trade system. “There are several issues such as problems facing global value chains,” he said.
APEC failed to adopt a joint declaration in both 2018 and 2019, during Trump’s first term, due to disagreements between member states. Officials say a successful outcome this year would signal renewed commitment to open trade in the region.
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