(September 9, 2011) Starting Monday, delegates from around the Pacific Rim will gather in San Francisco for the largest set of high-level diplomatic talks to be held in the California since the signing of the United Nations Charter in 1945. Hosting the gathering is the CalAPEC (Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation) committee, of which the California Chamber of Commerce is a founding member.

The APEC Senior Officials’ meeting, September 12–26, is expected to attract 1,500 delegates representing the 21 APEC member economies. The core mission of the APEC is to promote trade and investment among the Asia-Pacific member economies, strengthen economic integration in the Asia-Pacific region, as well as make regional economic growth more inclusive and sustainable.

Dignitaries scheduled to attend the APEC gathering include U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Energy Secretary Steven Chu, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. In total there will be 100 foreign ministers, Cabinet-level ministers and ambassadors participating. The schedule includes 150 official and public-private sessions and functions.

Expected is an intensive series of meetings, including the Senior Officials' Meeting, working group and committee meetings, together with public-private forums involving senior government and private sector leaders. Discussions will center on energy, transportation, women and the economy, digital prosperity, health care innovation, and many other topics.

A number of CalChamber member companies are part of this effort, including:  

California’s participation in APEC was first announced at the CalChamber Council for International Trade (CIT) meeting in 2008 by CIT member Paul Oliva, who since has been directing the CalAPEC organization.

The APEC 2011 California Host Committee, or CalAPEC, is the local host committee for APEC 2011 talks. It is a statewide coalition of business, government and international organizations under the umbrella of the Bay Area Council Economic Institute and the CalChamber. The committee also ensures that U.S. objectives reflect good policy for the Golden State as California is more dependent on Asia-Pacific business than any other U.S. state.

Susanne Stirling, CalChamber vice president of international affairs, is a private sector adviser to the U.S. delegation.

APEC Background

APEC was formed in 1989. It serves as a multilateral forum in which Asian and Pacific economies can solve economic problems and cooperate in developing key economic sectors.

Collectively, the 21 economies of APEC, which touch the Pacific Ocean, represent a large consumer market—nearly half the world’s population, nearly half of all world trade and more than $31 trillion in economic output (GDP).

The APEC economies are: Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Republic of the Philippines, Russia, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, United States and Vietnam.

APEC ministers have met each year since November 1994, when they issued the Bogor Declaration, which calls for industrialized members of APEC to remove trade barriers. The last time the United States hosted APEC was in 1993, with ministerial and summit meetings in the Seattle area.

The 2010 ministerial meeting was held in Japan. The Senior Officials’ and related meetings in San Francisco will be followed by the Leaders Week meeting in Honolulu in November 2011. The 2012 meetings will be held in Russia.

CalChamber Position

The CalChamber, in keeping with long-standing policy, enthusiastically supports free trade worldwide, expansion of international trade and investment, fair and equitable market access for California products abroad and elimination of disincentives that impede the international competitiveness of California business. New multilateral, sectoral and regional trade agreements ensure that the United States may continue to gain access to world markets, resulting in an improved economy and additional employment of Americans.

The APEC is important as a vehicle for all Asia-Pacific economic integration.

This regional group sets a high standard that will enhance the competitiveness of the countries that are part of it and help facilitate trade and promote investment among them, increasing their economic growth and development.