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Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation ( APEC ) is an inter-governmental forum for 21 member in the that promotes throughout the region. Following the success of ASEAN's series of post-ministerial conferences launched in the mid-1980s, APEC started in 1989, in response to the growing interdependence of economies and the advent of regional in other parts of the world; it aimed to establish new markets for agricultural products and raw materials beyond Europe. Headquartered in , APEC is recognized as one of the highest-level multilateral blocs and oldest forums in the Asia-Pacific / Americas region, and exerts significant global influence.

The heads of government of all APEC members except (which is represented by a ministerial-level official as economic leader) Conditions not right for APEC attendance: Ma . The China Post (27 August 2013). Retrieved 12 April 2014. attend an annual APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting. The location of the meeting rotates annually among the member economies, and a famous tradition, followed for most (but not all) summits, involves the attending leaders dressing in a of the host country. APEC has three official observers: the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Secretariat, the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council and the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat. APEC's Host Economy of the Year is considered to be invited in the first place for geographical representation to attend G20 meetings following G20 guidelines.

History
The initial inspiration for APEC came when the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)'s series of post-ministerial conferences, launched in the mid-1980s, had demonstrated the feasibility and value of regular conferences among ministerial-level representatives of both developed and developing economies. By 1986, the post-ministerial conferences had expanded to embrace 12 members (the then six members of ASEAN and its six dialogue partners). The developments led Australian Prime Minister to believe in the necessity of region-wide co-operation on economic matters. In January 1989, Bob Hawke called for more effective economic co-operation across the Pacific Rim region. This led to the first meeting of APEC in the Australian capital of in November, chaired by Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Gareth Evans. Attended by ministers from twelve countries, the meeting concluded with commitments to hold future annual meetings in and . Ten months later, representatives of 12 Asia-Pacific economies met in Canberra, Australia, to establish APEC. The APEC Secretariat, based in Singapore, was established to co-ordinate the activities of the organisation.

During the 1994 meeting in , Indonesia, APEC leaders adopted the Bogor Goals, which aimed for free and open trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific by 2010 for industrialised economies and by 2020 for developing economies. During the November 1995 Ministerial Meeting in Osaka, Japan, a business advisory body named the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) composed of three business executives from each member-country was agreed to be established in 1996.

In April 2001, APEC, in collaboration with five other international organisations (, International Energy Agency, , Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and the United Nations Statistics Division) launched the Joint Oil Data Exercise, which in 2005 became the Joint Organisations Data Initiative (JODI).

Meeting locations
The location of the annual meeting rotates among the members.

+APEC ministers' meeting
Prime Minister
Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew
President
Prime Minister Anand Panyarachun

+APEC economic leaders' meeting
President
President
Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama
President
Prime Minister Jean Chrétien
Prime Minister
Prime Minister
Sultan
General Secretary and President
President
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra
President
President
President Nguyễn Minh Triết
Prime Minister
President Alan Garcia Perez
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong
Prime Minister
President
President
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
General Secretary and President
President Benigno Aquino III
President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski
President Trần Đại Quang
Prime Minister Peter O'Neill
16–17 November
(cancelled)		President Sebastián Piñera
Prime Minister
Prime Minister
12 November
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha
President
President
President
General Secretary and President
TBA
TBA
TBA
TBA

Member economies
Currently, APEC has 21 members. The criterion for membership, however, is that each member must be an independent economic entity, rather than a sovereign state. As a result, APEC uses the term member economies rather than member countries to refer to its members. One result of this criterion is that membership of the forum includes Taiwan (officially the Republic of China, participating under the name "Chinese Taipei") alongside People's Republic of China (see Cross-Strait relations), as well as Hong Kong, which entered APEC as a British colony but it is now a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. APEC also includes three official observers: , the Pacific Islands Forum and the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council.

AustraliaNovember 19891,802,006
Brunei DarussalamNovember 198915,510
CanadaNovember 19892,214,796
ChileNovember 1994328,720
People's Republic of ChinaNovember 199118,273,357
Hong Kong, ChinaNovember 1991401,751
IndonesiaNovember 19891,402,590
JapanNovember 19894,070,094
MalaysiaNovember 1989439,748
MexicoNovember 19931,848,125
New ZealandNovember 1989252,236
Papua New GuineaNovember 199331,716
PeruNovember 1998283,309
The PhilippinesNovember 1989470,062
RussiaNovember 19982,184,316
SingaporeNovember 1989530,708
Republic of KoreaNovember 19891,869,916
Chinese TaipeiNovember 1991775,017
ThailandNovember 1989528,919
The United StatesNovember 198929,167,779
Viet NamNovember 1998468,485
Leaders
Prime MinisterTreasurer
Sultan
Prime Minister		Minister of Finance and Economy
Second Minister of Finance and Economy
Amin Liew Abdullah
Prime MinisterMinister of FinanceFrançois-Philippe Champagne
PresidentMinister of Finance
CCP General Secretary
President		Minister of FinanceLan Fo'an
Chief ExecutiveJohn LeeFinancial SecretaryPaul Chan
PresidentMinister of FinancePurbaya Yudhi Sadewa
Prime MinisterMinister of FinanceKatsunobu Katō
PresidentMinister of Economy and Finance
Prime MinisterMinister of Finance
PresidentClaudia SheinbaumSecretary of Finance and Public CreditEdgar Amador Zamora
Prime MinisterChristopher LuxonMinister of Finance
Prime MinisterMinister for Finance and Rural DevelopmentYangakun Miki Kaeok
PresidentJosé JeríMinister of Economy and FinanceVacant
PresidentSecretary of Finance
PresidentMinister of Finance
Prime MinisterMinister of Finance
President / Leader Envoy (represented by )Minister of Finance
Prime MinisterAnutin CharnvirakulMinister of Finance
PresidentSecretary of the Treasury
PresidentLương CườngMinister of FinanceNguyễn Văn Thắng
Current leaders
File:Anthony Albanese portrait (cropped).jpg|alt=Anthony Albanese, Prime Minister of Australia|
,
Prime Minister File:His Majesty Bolkiah 20231216.jpg|alt=Hassanal Bolkiah, Sultan of Brunei|
,
Sultan File:Mark Carney portrait February 2020.jpg|alt=Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney|
,
Prime Minister File:Retrato Oficial Presidente Boric Font (cropped).jpg|alt=Gabriel Boric, President of Chile|
,
President File:Xi Jinping (June 2025) (cropped).jpg|alt=ChinaXi Jinping,President|
,
CCP General Secretary and President File:Inmediahk - John Lee 2023 (cropped).jpg|alt=John Lee, Chief Executive of Hong Kong|
John Lee,
Chief Executive File:Prabowo Subianto 2024 official portrait.jpg|alt=Prabowo Subianto, President of Indonesia|
,
President File:Ishiba Shigeru 20241001 (cropped).jpg|alt=Shigeru Ishiba, Prime Minister of Japan|
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Prime Minister File:Lee Jae-myung 20250823.jpg|alt=Lee Jae-myung, President of South Korea|
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President File:Anwar Ibrahim June 2025.jpg|alt=Anwar Ibrahim, Prime Minister of Malaysia|
,
Prime Minister File:Claudia Sheinbaum (2025) (cropped).jpg|alt=Claudia Sheinbaum, President of Mexico|
Claudia Sheinbaum,
President File:LUXON, Christopher - Botany (cropped).png|alt=Christopher Luxon, Prime Minister of New Zealand|
Christopher Luxon,
Prime Minister File:Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea on July 27, 2023 - 230727-D-TT977-0140 (cropped).jpg|alt=James Marape, Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea|
,
Prime Minister File:COMISIÓN DE PRESUPUESTO DEL CONGRESO DE LA REPÚBLICA EN MUNICIPALIDAD DE SAN JUAN DE LURIGANCHO (cropped).jpg|alt=José Jerí, President of Peru|
José Jerí,
President File:Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr (cropped portrait).jpg|alt= Bongbong Marcos, President of the Philippines|
,
President File:Владимир Путин (08-03-2024) (cropped) (higher res).jpg|alt=Vladimir Putin, President of Russia|
,
President File:Prime Minister of Singapore Lawrence Wong 250530-D-PM193-4275 (2025).jpg|alt=Lawrence Wong, Prime Minister of Singapore|
,
Prime Minister File:賴清德總統 (cropped).jpg|alt= Lai Ching-te, President of Taiwan (represented by Lin Hsin-i)|
, President
(represented by ) File:Anutin Charnvirakul - 2023 (52638148766) (cropped).jpg|alt=Anutin Charnvirakul, Prime Minister of Thailand|
Anutin Charnvirakul,
Prime Minister File:Official Presidential Portrait of President Donald J. Trump (2025).jpg|alt=Donald Trump, President of the United States|
,
President File:Luong Cuong 11112024.jpg|
Lương Cường,
President |alt=Vietnam Lương Cường,President

Possible enlargement
has requested membership in APEC, and received initial support from the United States, South Korea, Australia, and Papua New Guinea. Officials have decided not to allow India to join for various reasons, including the fact that India does not border the Pacific Ocean, which all current members do. However, India was invited to be an observer for the first time in November 2011.

Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, , Mongolia, Laos, Cambodia, Costa Rica, , Panama, and Ecuador, are among a dozen other economies that have applied for membership in APEC. Colombia applied for APEC's membership as early as in 1995, but its bid was halted as the organisation stopped accepting new members from 1993 to 1996, and the moratorium was further prolonged to 2007 due to the 1997 Asian financial crisis.

Business facilitation
As a regional organization, APEC has always played a leading role in the area of reform initiatives in the area of business facilitation. The APEC Trade Facilitation Action Plan (TFAPI) has contributed to a reduction of 6% in the cost of business transactions across the region between 2002 and 2006. According to APEC's projections, the cost of conducting business transactions will be reduced by another 5% between 2007 and 2010. To this end, a new Trade Facilitation Action Plan has been endorsed. According to a 2008 research brief published by the as part of its Trade Costs and Facilitation Project, increasing transparency in the region's trading system is critical if APEC is to meet its Bogor Goal targets. "Transparency Reform Could Raise Trade by $148 Billion in APEC" John S. Wilson & Benjamin Taylor; Trade Facilitation Reform Research Brief, The World Bank. 2008. The APEC Business Travel Card, a for visa-free business travel within the region is one of the concrete measures to facilitate business. In May 2010 Russia joined the scheme, thus completing the circle.

Proposed FTAAP
APEC first formally started discussing the concept of a Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP) at its summit in 2006 in Hanoi. However, the proposal for such an area has been around since at least 1966 and Japanese economist 's proposal for a Pacific Free Trade agreement. While it gained little traction, the idea led to the formation of Pacific Trade and Development Conference and then the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council in 1980 and then APEC in 1989.

In the wake of the 2006 summit, economist C. Fred Bergsten advocated a Free Trade Agreement of Asia-Pacific, including the United States amongst the proposed parties to any agreement at that time.Bergsten, C. Fred, "Toward a Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific", Peterson Institute for International Economics Number Pb07-2. Pdf can be found via Google. Retrieved 9 November 2014. His ideas convinced the APEC Business Advisory Council to support this concept. Relatedly, ASEAN and existing free trade agreement (FTA) partners negotiated the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), not officially including Russia. The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) without China or Russia involved became the US-promoted trade negotiation in the region. At the APEC summit in Beijing in 2014, the three plans were all in discussion. President Obama hosted a TPP meeting at the US Embassy in Beijing in advance of the APEC gathering.

The proposal for a FTAAP arose due to the lack of progress in the of World Trade Organization negotiations, and as a way to overcome the "noodle bowl" effect created by overlapping and conflicting elements of the copious free trade agreements – there were approximately 60 free trade agreements in 2007, with an additional 117 in the process of negotiation in Southeast Asia and the Asia-Pacific region. In 2012, ASEAN+6 countries alone had 339 free trade agreements – many of which were bilateral.

The FTAAP is more ambitious in scope than the Doha round, which limits itself to reducing trade restrictions. The FTAAP would create a free trade zone that would considerably expand commerce and economic growth in the region. No reference to numbers of FTAs. The economic expansion and growth in trade could exceed the expectations of other regional free trade areas such as the ASEAN Plus Three (ASEAN + China, South Korea and Japan). Policy Briefs in International Economics (PDF) Some criticisms include that the diversion of trade within APEC members would create trade imbalances, market conflicts and complications with nations of other regions. The development of the FTAAP is expected to take many years, involving essential studies, evaluations and negotiations between member economies. It is also affected by the absence of political will and popular agitations and lobbying against free trade in domestic politics.

At the 2014 APEC summit in Beijing, APEC leaders agreed to launch "a collective strategic study" on the FTAAP and instruct officials to undertake the study, consult stakeholders and report the result by the end of 2016. APEC Executive Director Alan Bollard revealed in the Elite Talk show that FTAAP will be APEC's big goal out into the future.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership included 12 of the 21 APEC members and had provisions for the accession of other APEC members, five of which expressed interest in membership.

APEC Study Centre Consortium
In 1993, APEC Leaders decided to establish a network of APEC Study Centres (APCs) among universities and research institutions in member economies. The purpose is to foster cooperation among tertiary and research institutes of member economies, thus having better academic collaboration on key regional economic challenges. To encourage independence from the APEC conference, the APCs are funded independently and choose their own research topics.

As of December 2018, there are 70 APCs among the member economies. An annual conference is usually held in the host economy for that year.

APEC Business Advisory Council
The APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) was created by the APEC Economic Leaders in November 1995 with the aim of providing advice to the APEC Economic Leaders on ways to achieve the Bogor Goals and other specific business sector priorities, and to provide the business perspective on specific areas of co-operation.

Each economy nominates up to three members from the private sector to ABAC. These business leaders represent a wide range of industry sectors. ABAC provides an annual report to APEC Economic Leaders containing recommendations to improve the business and investment environment in the Asia-Pacific region, and outlining business views about priority regional issues. ABAC is also the only non-governmental organisation that is on the official agenda of the APEC Economic Leader's Meeting.

Annual APEC economic leaders' meetings
Since its formation in 1989, APEC has held annual meetings with representatives from all member economies. The first four annual meetings were attended by ministerial-level officials. Beginning in 1993, the annual meetings are named APEC Economic Leaders' Meetings and are attended by the heads of government from all member economies except Taiwan, which is represented by a ministerial-level official.

Meeting developments
In 1997, the APEC meeting was held in . Controversy arose after officers of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police used against protesters. The protesters objected to the presence of leaders such as Indonesian president .
(2025). 9780774807791, UBC Press. .

At the 2001 Leaders' Meeting in Shanghai, APEC leaders pushed for a new round of trade negotiations and support for a program of trade capacity-building assistance, leading to the launch of the Doha Development Agenda a few weeks later. The meeting also endorsed the Shanghai Accord proposed by the United States, emphasising the implementation of open markets, structural reform, and capacity building. As part of the accord, the meeting committed to develop and implement APEC transparency standards, reduce trade in the Asia-Pacific region by five percent over five years, and pursue policies relating to information technology goods and services.

In 2003, leader had planned to attack the APEC Leaders Meeting to be held in in October. He was captured in the city of Ayutthaya, Thailand by Thai police on 11 August 2003, before he could finish planning the attack.

Chile became the first South American nation to host the Leaders' Meeting in 2004. The agenda of that year was focused on terrorism and commerce, small and medium enterprise development, and contemplation of free agreements and regional trade agreements.

The 2005 Leaders' Meeting was held in , South Korea. The meeting focused on the of World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiations, leading up to the WTO Ministerial Conference of 2005 held in Hong Kong in December. Weeks earlier, trade negotiations in Paris were held between several WTO members, including the United States and the , centred on reducing agricultural . APEC leaders at the summit urged the European Union to agree to reduce . In a continuation of the climate information sharing initiative established by the APEC Climate Network working group, it was decided by the leaders to install the APEC Climate Center in Busan. Peaceful protests against APEC were staged in Busan, but the meeting schedule was not affected.

At the Leaders' Meeting held on 19 November 2006 in , APEC leaders called for a new start to global free-trade negotiations while condemning terrorism and other threats to security. APEC also criticised North Korea for conducting a nuclear test and a missile test launch that year, urging the country to take "concrete and effective" steps toward nuclear disarmament. Concerns about nuclear proliferation in the region was discussed in addition to economic topics. The United States and Russia signed an agreement as part of Russia's bid to join the World Trade Organization.

The APEC Australia 2007 Leaders' Meeting was held in Sydney from 2–9 September 2007. The political leaders agreed to an "aspirational goal" of a 25% reduction of energy intensity correlative with economic development. Extreme security measures including airborne sharpshooters and extensive steel-and-concrete barricades were deployed against anticipated protesters and potential terrorists. However, protest activities were peaceful and the security envelope was penetrated with ease by a spoof diplomatic motorcade manned by members of the Australian television program , one of whom was dressed to resemble the leader Osama bin Laden.

The APEC Chile 2019, originally to be held 16–17 November 2019 in Chile, was cancelled due to ongoing protests by sections of its population over inequality, the cost of living and police repression.

The 2023 APEC meeting was notable for a lack of consensuses of group members on their stance over the Russia–Ukraine and as well as consensus for WTO reforms. The meeting between and was also seen as significant in terms of reducing tensions between the US and China.

APEC leaders' group photo
At the end of the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting, the leaders gather for the official APEC Leaders' Family Photo. A tradition has the leaders dressing to reflect the culture of the host member. The tradition dates to the first such meeting in 1993 when then-U.S. President insisted on informal attire and gave the leaders leather . At the 2010 meeting, Japan had the leaders dress in smart casual rather than the traditional . Similarly, when Honolulu was selected in 2009 as the site for the 2011 APEC meeting, U.S. President joked that he looked forward to seeing the leaders dressed in "flowered shirts and grass skirts". After viewing previous photos, and concerned that having the leaders dress in might give the wrong impression during a period of economic austerity, Obama instead decided it might be time to end the tradition. Leaders were given a specially designed aloha shirt as a gift but were not expected to wear it for the photo. Leaders in Bali, Indonesia at the 2013 conference wore a batik outfit; in China 2014 Tang suit jackets; in the Philippines 2015 ; in Peru 2016 vicuña wool shawls; in 2017 Vietnamese silk shirts.

File:Photograph of President William Jefferson Clinton and Leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) on the Tyee Ferry on Blake Island in Seattle, Washington - NARA - 5720209.jpg|APEC United States 1993 File:Vladimir Putin at APEC Summit in Brunei 15-16 November-9.jpg|APEC Brunei 2000 File:Vladimir Putin at APEC Summit in China 19-21 October 2001-14.jpg|APEC China 2001 File:Vladimir Putin at APEC Summit in Thailand 19-21 October 2003-16.jpg|APEC Thailand 2003 File:Vladimir Putin at APEC Summit in Chile 20-21 November 2004-3.jpg|APEC Chile 2004 File:Vladimir Putin at APEC Summit in South Korea 18-19 November 2005-8.jpg|APEC South Korea 2005 File:Vladimir Putin at APEC Summit in Vietnam 18-19 November 2006-11.jpg|APEC Vietnam 2006 File:Vladimir Putin at APEC Summit in Australia 7-9 September 2007-3.jpg|APEC Australia 2007 File:Dmitry Medvedev at APEC Summit in Peru 22-23 November 2008-2.jpg|APEC Peru 2008 File:Singapore APEC 2009 leaders.jpg|APEC Singapore 2009 File:13.11.2010 Gira a Asia.jpg|APEC Japan 2010 File:APEC Hawaii.jpg|APEC United States 2011 File:APEC Russia 2012.jpg|APEC Russia 2012 File:Apec 2013.jpg|APEC Indonesia 2013 File:APEC Summit China 2014.jpg|APEC China 2014 File:APEC Philippines 2015 delegates.jpg|APEC Philippines 2015 File:Foto Oficial APEC 2016 (LIMA PERU).jpg|APEC Peru 2016 File:APEC Vietnam 2017 Leaders Meeting.jpg|APEC Vietnam 2017 File:APEC Leaders Photo - Papua New Guinea 2018.jpg|APEC Papua New Guinea 2018 File:President Joe Biden participates in a family photo with APEC leaders and guest leaders on November 16, 2023 in San Francisco, California.jpg|APEC United States 2023 File:APEC Peru 2024 family photo.jpg|APEC Peru 2024

APEC Summits
  • APEC Australia 1989
  • APEC Singapore 1990
  • APEC South Korea 1991
  • APEC Thailand 1992
  • APEC United States 1993
  • APEC Indonesia 1994
  • APEC Japan 1995
  • APEC Philippines 1996
  • APEC Canada 1997
  • APEC Malaysia 1998
  • APEC New Zealand 1999
  • APEC Brunei 2000
  • APEC China 2001
  • APEC Mexico 2002
  • APEC Thailand 2003
  • APEC Chile 2004
  • APEC South Korea 2005
  • APEC Vietnam 2006
  • APEC Australia 2007
  • APEC Peru 2008
  • APEC Singapore 2009
  • APEC Japan 2010
  • APEC United States 2011
  • APEC Russia 2012
  • APEC Indonesia 2013
  • APEC China 2014
  • APEC Philippines 2015
  • APEC Peru 2016
  • APEC Vietnam 2017
  • APEC Papua New Guinea 2018
  • APEC Chile 2019
  • APEC Malaysia 2020
  • APEC New Zealand 2021
  • APEC Thailand 2022
  • APEC United States 2023
  • APEC Peru 2024
  • APEC South Korea 2025
  • APEC China 2026
  • APEC Vietnam 2027
  • APEC Japan 2028

Criticism
APEC has been criticised for promoting free trade agreements that would impose restrictions on national and local laws, which regulate and ensure labour rights, environmental protection and safe and affordable access to medicine. According to the organisation, it is "the premier forum for facilitating economic growth, cooperation, trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific region" established to "further enhance economic growth and prosperity for the region and to strengthen the Asia-Pacific community". The effectiveness and fairness of its role has been questioned, especially from the viewpoints of European countries that cannot take part in APEC and Pacific Island nations that cannot participate but stand to be affected by its decisions.

See also
  • ASEAN Free Trade Area
  • Asia-Europe Meeting
  • Asia-Pacific Trade Agreements Database
  • East Asia Economic Caucus
  • East Asia Summit
  • List of country groupings
  • List of multilateral free-trade agreements
  • Pacific Economic Cooperation Council
  • University Mobility in Asia and the Pacific

Other organisations of coastal states
  • Bay of Bengal Initiative
  • Black Sea Economic Cooperation
  • Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation
  • Union for the Mediterranean

Notes
Further reading
External links

: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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