APEC Member Countries Discuss Economic Recovery Measures After COVID-19

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo In-ho] Member countries of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) discussed economic recovery measures such as trade and investment liberalization within the region after COVID-19.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on the 15th that Lee Seong-ho, Director-General for Economic Diplomacy Coordination, attended the first APEC Senior Officials' Meeting (SOM) held via video conference from the 10th to the 12th.

The SOM is a meeting to review preparations for the APEC Leaders' Meeting. This year, New Zealand is the chair country, and Korea will host in 2025.

At the meeting, participants agreed on the need to revive the regional economy, which has been stagnated due to COVID-19, and discussed trade and investment liberalization, promotion of the digital economy, and inclusive and sustainable growth measures.

To stabilize regional supply chains, they confirmed their commitment to minimizing trade restrictive measures and to regional economic integration, including the Asia-Pacific Free Trade Area (FTAAP), a long-term agenda agreed upon in 2006.

Director-General Lee proposed specific cooperation measures related to strengthening regional supply chains, enhancing service competitiveness, and promoting the digital economy.

He stated, “The smooth trade of essential goods and the movement of essential personnel such as businesspeople to minimize supply chain disruptions are important,” and added, “A rapid recovery of service industries such as aviation and transportation, which were hit hard by COVID-19, will be necessary.”

He also explained the government's Green New Deal policy and emphasized joint responses to carbon reduction and cross-border environmental challenges.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.