Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation
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Why We Engage in APEC
Watch Live – May 26, 3:45pm ET: APEC SOM2: Ministers Responsible for Trade Meeting Day 2, Concluding Press Conference by U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador Katherine Tai – Detroit, MI
APEC SOM2: Ministers Responsible for Trade Meeting Day 2, Additional Remarks by U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador Katherine Tai – Detroit, MI
Watch May 26 Live, 1:00pm ET: (English) | Chinese (Mandarin) | Indonesian | Japanese (METI) | Japanese (MOFA) | Spanish | Vietnamese
Through APEC, the United States seeks to advance a free, fair, and open economic policy agenda that benefits U.S. workers, businesses, and families. The 21 APEC member economies account for nearly 40 percent of the global population, or nearly 3 billion people, and nearly 50 percent of global trade.
As of 2021, fellow APEC members were the destination for more than 60 percent of U.S. goods exports, and seven of the top 10 overall trading partners for the United States are APEC members.
As part of our enduring commitment to the region and broad-based economic growth, the United States is excited to serve as APEC host in 2023. Hosting APEC in 2023 will provide the United States with a unique opportunity to showcase U.S. economic leadership and multilateralism in the Indo-Pacific and highlight the direct impact of international economic engagement on prosperity here in the United States.
Under the theme “Creating a Resilient and Sustainable Future for All,” we plan to build a more interconnected, innovative, and inclusive APEC region.
Through our APEC 2023 host year, we will seek to further U.S. economic engagement with the region. Regular exchanges among governments, business leaders – including through the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) – and other stakeholders are critical to ensuring that APEC is delivering pragmatic solutions to the key challenges facing U.S. workers and businesses, both at home and in the region.
2023 APEC Theme and Priorities
Theme: Creating a Resilient & Sustainable Future for All
Priorities
Please visit Our Priorities on APEC’s site for more information.
Interconnected
Building a resilient and interconnected region that advances broad-based economic prosperity.
Some of the other key focus areas for 2023 in support of our first priority of “interconnected” include:
- Strengthening supply chain resilience
- Enhancing services trade
- Promoting digital trade
- Restarting cross-border travel
- Enhancing infrastructure and transportation networks
- Strengthening health systems
- Implementation of the FTAAP Agenda Workplan
- Support for the WTO
Innovative
Enabling an innovative environment for a sustainable future.
Some of our particular areas of focus will include:
- Enhancing climate mitigation and resilience
- Reducing disaster risk and improving emergency preparedness and response
- Promoting the digital economy and enhancing digitization
- Promoting food security, food safety, and agricultural biotechnology
- Tackling environmental challenges
- Fostering an enabling environment
Inclusive
Affirming an equitable and inclusive future for all.
Key areas of focus will include:
- Advancing gender equity
- Strengthening SMEs
- Addressing inclusion in trade
- Expanding economic potential and opportunity through investments in infrastructure and workers
- Elevating workers’ voices
- Engaging historically underserved and underrepresented segments of the population
APEC Economies and the World
Population
| Population | |
|---|---|
| Rest of World | 62% |
| PRC | 18% |
| USA | 4% |
| INA | 4% |
| RUS | 2% |
| MEX | 2% |
| Rest of APEC | 8% |
GDP
| GDP | |
|---|---|
| Rest of World | 38% |
| USA | 25% |
| PRC | 17% |
| JPN | 6% |
| CDA | 2% |
| ROK | 2% |
| Rest of APEC | 10% |
Trade
| Trade | |
|---|---|
| Rest of World | 52% |
| PRC | 12% |
| USA | 11% |
| JPN | 4% |
| HKC | 3% |
| ROK | 3% |
| Rest of APEC | 10% |
