Deputy Trade Minister Liew Chin Tong in his speech at the APEC Ministers Responsible Trade Meeting in Detroit, US called for a more collective and inclusive economy that benefits all be it the bottom up and middle up.
The Minister went on recall when APEC was established in 1989, it was a very different era. The world was emerging from the Cold War and there was plenty of optimism about the future and about economies cooperating with each other. The world is now a darker place, in the face of the poly-crisis of the pandemic, wars and geopolitical tensions, financial crisis, and inequality, as well as climate emergency.
“First, we must ensure that trade policies do more to ensure a green transition and to build a resilient global health system”.
Second, he added APEC is a unique organisation where all sides sit at the same table and has yet to be decoupled. Malaysia calls for APEC to ensure member economies do not enter into economic decoupling and that the world does not become a bifurcated place.
It is important to ensure that APEC, the WTO, and the Multilateral Trading System continue to thrive.
On the third point, Liew devotes some time to talk about inequality in the world. “The Chair Ambassador Tai outlined a vision for trade, that the new vision of trade is worker-centric, and that trade’s benefits will be bottom-up and middle-up. This is a fresh way of looking at trade and hopefully, it will end the “race to the bottom” in the last 40 years.”
“But this mission is only complete if it is going to protect the middle class in the advanced economies as well as in Malaysia and other developing economies, especially those in Southeast Asia. It is about better jobs, better pay, and better opportunities for SMEs throughout APEC, throughout the region, and throughout the world.”
At the centre of discussions about the future of the WTO and APEC, Liew said all should ensure that trade benefits all, and should realise the Putrajaya Vision 2040 which was agreed upon when Malaysia chaired in 2020. That is to create an open, dynamic, resilient and peaceful Asia Pacific community.
