KUALA LUMPUR: Pacific Rim economies are not leading global growth due to slowing trade and the increasing risk of protectionism but there is potential in services trade as well as for small businesses in supply chains.
The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), a grouping of 21 economies including Malaysia, is also pressing ahead to address bottlenecks at and behind borders for it to be fully realised.
APEC Secretariat Executive Director Dr Alan Bollard said efforts towards more openness and integration could boost ebbing trade while positioning them to tackle mounting structural impediments to productivity and social well-being.
"The Asia-Pacific continues to grow but is no longer the world's leader of growth and the slowing of trade is at the heart of the problem.
"The shortcomings of globalisation in today's changing environment are increasing the risk of protectionism that could further weigh on economies," he said, during a regional business forum that just concluded in Bangkok.
"There is still considerable potential in the Asia-Pacific for growth in sectors like services trade and small business participation in supply chains," he continued.
Keeping trade and investment barriers in check and taking next steps to enable more people and businesses to take advantage will be an important determinant of future prosperity.
APEC economies are pursuing new targets to improve the ease of doing business in the region, with focus on reducing the time it takes to start a business, obtaining financing and permits, and trading across borders.
At the same time, APEC economies are ramping up information sharing and technical assistance to facilitate trade agreements that go beyond the reduction of tariffs alone to address emerging issues such as hurdles to innovation and digital development.
APEC economies are forecast to grow 3.4 per cent in 2016, the same as world GDP growth, the APEC Policy Support Unit reports.
This is up from 3.1 per cent growth in APEC in 2015, which was undermined by a contraction in regional trade.
Representatives from the APEC Business Advisory Council will meet in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea from April 25-28 April to flesh out new policy recommendations for APEC economies.
This will be followed by the 2016 APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade Meeting on May 17-18 in Arequipa, Peru.