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APEC trade ministers omit protectionism pledge in statement

Bloomberg Published on Mon, May 22, 2017 / 2:14 PM GMT+8

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(May 22): Asia-Pacific trade ministers issued a diluted “actions” statement after a weekend meeting in Vietnam, suggesting further pressure from the U.S. to avoid explicit pledges to combat protectionism.

The statement came after a dispute over wording, particularly whether to include language about protectionism. Instead, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation document focused on issues like regulation and red tape.

“We call on officials to accelerate work to deepen APEC’s structural reform agenda to remove barriers to trade and investment,” it said.