21 Asia-Pacific nations and territories will open a conference in Singapore on Wednesday to discuss regional trade and economic issues.
The ministerial conference of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum will be held for 2 days, followed by summit meetings due to start on Saturday.
Senior officials have already begun discussions and some ministers have also started arriving in Singapore amid tight security, with checkpoints placed around the conference site.
The ministerial conference will focus on ways to create a free-trade zone in the region. The 21 APEC economies account for 60 percent of the global gross domestic product.
Topics on the agenda include how to promote economic growth in the aftermath of the global financial crisis and how to balance efforts to tackle climate change against the need for economic expansion.
The ministers are also likely to agree to speed up World Trade Organization negotiations on trade liberalization, aiming to reach agreement next year.
2009/11/10 20:51(JST)
(JST: UTC+9hrs.)
http://www.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/10_38.html
Wed Nov 11, 2009 11:22 am