Summit ends with call to resist protectionism amid rising scepticism

LIMA: Leaders of 21 Asia-Pacific nations ended their annual summit with a call to resist protectionism amid signs of increased free-trade scepticism, highlighted by the victory of Donald Trump in the US presidential election.

The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) forum also closed on Sunday with a joint pledge to work toward a sweeping new free trade agreement that would include all 21 members as a path to “sustainable, balanced and inclusive growth,” despite the political climate.

“We reaffirm our commitment to keep our markets open and to fight against all forms of protectionism,” the leaders of the Apec nations said in a joint statement.

Apec noted the “rising scepticism over trade” amid an uneven recovery since the financial crisis and said that “the benefits of trade and open markets need to be communicated to the wider public more effectively, emphasising how trade promotes innovation, employment and higher living standards.”

Speaking to journalists at the conclusion of the summit, meeteing host, Peruvian President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski said the main obstacle to free trade agreements in Asia and around the world is the frustration felt by those left behind by globalisation.

“Protectionism in reality is a reflection of tough economic conditions,” said Kuczynski.

Referring to Britain’s vote to leave the European Union and Trump’s election win in the US, he said those results highlighted the backlash against globalisation in former industrial regions in the US and Britain that contrasts with support for trade in more-prosperous urban areas and developing countries.

“This is an important point in recent economic history because of the outcome of various elections in very important countries that have reflected an anti-trade, anti-openness feeling,” he said.

This was the last international summit for US President Barack Obama and he had been expected to promote the Trans-Pacific Partnership pact, a 12-nation trade deal.

But he is no longer expected to seek ratification by Congress before he leaves office because of the election victory by Trump, who called the agreement a “disaster” for jobs.

Questions about Trump trailed Obama throughout trip as anxious world leaders quizzed him on Trump’s stances on key issues like trade, foreign policy and the NATO alliance.

On his final day in Peru, Obama sought to reassure the leaders gathered here that their longstanding ties with the US wouldn’t falter under Trump.

Leaders of other nations said at the Apec meeting that they might seek to modify the TPP deal to make it more appealing to the incoming president or seek to implement it without the US.

But the statement issued at the close of the summit said the organisation would also work toward adoption of a broader 21-nation pact favoured by the Chinese government known as the Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he is keeping an open mind about Trump, who has threatened to tear up the North American Free Trade Agreement between his country, the US and Mexico.

“We’re not going to jump to any conclusion about what the incoming American administration is going to actually do,” Trudeau said.

“There’s been a certain amount of things said. But at same time we know that trade is good for the middle class and those working hard to join it.”

The Apec statement also said the members would adhere to the carbon reduction goals set in Paris last year to address climate change, a problem that they called a threat to food security and security. — AP