Business leaders from the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum have called for greater action to boost free trade, digitalization and climate response.
The APEC Business Advisory Council, or ABAC, compiled a set of recommendations after wrapping up a four-day meeting in Tokyo on Sunday. The delegates from 21 member economies discussed regional economic integration and sustainability.
The council said that to achieve free trade in the Asia-Pacific region as e-commerce expands, rules need to be created to prevent the use of tariffs on digital trade.
The delegates cited the need to make artificial intelligence and other technologies accessible to small and midsized businesses to boost digitalization.
Their recommendations also call for the public and private sectors to cooperate in scaling up financing for decarbonization efforts in order to address the climate crisis.
ABAC Chair Julia Torreblanca said at a news conference that removing trade and investment barriers, promoting free trade and accelerating the climate response are the most urgent issues.