On Thursday, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) group signaled a significant slowdown in export growth for the region this year, largely attributed to U.S. tariff policies.
As the 21-member bloc convened its annual gathering of trade ministers, APEC predicted a modest 0.4% rise in exports for the current year, a stark contrast to the 5.7% expansion recorded last year. This forecast was included in APEC’s regional trends analysis report during its 2025 trade ministers’ meeting held on Jeju Island, South Korea.
APEC also downgraded its economic growth outlook for the region to 2.6%, down from a previous projection of 3.3%. The organization stated that a decline in trade growth is anticipated due to reduced external demand, particularly impacting manufacturing and consumer goods, alongside increased uncertainty affecting services trade.
The Trump administration’s extensive tariff measures have affected over half of the APEC member nations, in a region where the average tariff rates had dropped significantly from 17% in 1989 to 5.3% by 2021. During this time frame, merchandise trade within the bloc witnessed a more-than-nine-fold surge.
Trade representatives from member economies are set to engage in discussions over two days, focusing on multilateral trade issues, including WTO reforms amid ongoing challenges.
Meanwhile, the U.S. administration, critical of the WTO for purportedly giving China an undue export advantage, has recently halted funding to the body.
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer is scheduled for bilateral discussions with his South Korean counterpart, following their initial trade talks in Washington, D.C., and will meet with New Zealand and other Asian nations, emphasizing the U.S.’s eagerness to progress swiftly in trade negotiations.
Additionally, China’s Vice Commerce Minister Li Chenggang’s presence at the APEC meeting raises speculation about further talks with Greer, following their agreement to reduce tariffs in earlier discussions in Geneva.
This ministerial meeting is part of preparatory work for an APEC leaders’ summit later this year in Gyeongju, South Korea. APEC plays a crucial role in global trade, accounting for around half of global trade and 60% of global GDP.
