Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

2025 APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade Joint Statement

2025 APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade Joint Statement Jeju, Republic of Korea | 15-16 May 2025   1. We, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Ministers Responsible for Trade (MRT), met in Jeju, Republic of Korea, from 15-16 May 2025, under the chairmanship of H.E. Inkyo Cheong, Minister of Trade of the Republic of Korea. We welcome the participation of the Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Deputy Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council (PECC).   2. Taking inspiration from Korea's APEC 2025 theme "Building a Sustainable Tomorrow", we have advanced APEC’s agenda through three thematic priorities: Connectivity through Multilateral Trading System, Artificial Intelligence (AI) Innovation for Trade Facilitation, and Prosperity through Sustainable Trade.   3. We remain committed to the Putrajaya Vision 2040, including through the implementation of the Aotearoa Plan of Action to build an open, dynamic, resilient, and peaceful Asia-Pacific community for the prosperity of all our people and future generations. We are concerned with the fundamental challenges faced by the global trading system. We remain committed to APEC as the premier forum for regional economic cooperation and emphasize the importance of its role in bringing us together to address the economic challenges facing our region and create a more resilient and prosperous Asia-Pacific region.   4. We recognize the importance of the WTO to advance trade issues, and acknowledge the agreed upon rules in the WTO as an integral part of the global trading system. We recognize the WTO has challenges and needs meaningful, necessary, and comprehensive reform to improve all its functions, through innovative approaches, to be more relevant and responsive in light of today’s realities.   5. We welcome the acceptance by 16 APEC economies of the WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies, and call on remaining economies to complete their domestic procedures, and encourage all WTO Members to conclude negotiations on additional disciplines as soon as possible. We recognize the need for a constructive engagement on agriculture at the WTO. We also note the extension of the moratorium on customs duties on electronic transmissions as decided at MC13. We note the importance of enhancing predictability for the development of the digital economy. We welcome efforts to continue to reinvigorate work under the Work Program on Electronic Commerce.   6. We recognize the positive role of plurilateral negotiations at the WTO, including the Joint Statement Initiatives (JSIs), for advancing issues of interest to Members and to make the WTO more relevant. We welcome the progress made and emphasize their roles to address contemporary trade issues, foster new ideas, facilitate economic growth, and build momentum toward multilateral outcomes. We note the efforts of participating Members of the WTO JSIs to incorporate the Investment Facilitation for Development Agreement and the Agreement on Electronic Commerce into the WTO legal framework. We note the Statement of the APEC Committee on Trade and Investment together with the APEC Investment Experts’ Group Supporting the Investment Facilitation for Development Agreement, which reaffirms APEC’s strong commitment to a more transparent, predictable and business-friendly investment environment.   7. Recognizing its importance to APEC, we reaffirm our shared commitment to advancing economic integration in the Asia-Pacific region in a manner that is market-driven, including through the work on Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP) agenda. We welcome the study conducted by the APEC Policy Support Unit (PSU) on areas of convergence an date2025-05-19

Trade Minister attends 2025 APEC MRT Meeting opening ceremony

Korea’s Trade Minister Inkyo Cheong attended the opening ceremony of the 2025 APEC MRT Meeting on May 15 at ICC Jeju with the participation of 21 major Asia-Pacific member economies’ trade ministers and the WTO Director-General and the OECD Deputy Secretary-General, where he gave an opening address and took part in discussions on the liberalization and facilitation of trade and investment among other trade issues and intraregional cooperation measures. date2025-05-15

Trade Minister attends DEPA Ministerial Meeting

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong attended the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement (DEPA) Ministerial Meeting on May 15 at ICC Jeju held on the sidelines of the 2025 APEC MRT Meeting and discussed key agendas including other countries’ accession to DEPA. date2025-05-15

Trade Minister meets Malaysia’s Minister of Investment, Trade, and Industry

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong met with Malaysia’s Minister of Investment, Trade, and Industry Datuk Seri Utama Tengku Zafrul Aziz on May 15 at ICC Jeju on the occasion of the 2025 APEC MRT Meeting and discussed bilateral trade issues including the progress on the Korea-Malaysia FTA negotiations. date2025-05-15

Trade Minister meets Assistant Minister of Chinese Ministry of Commerce

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong met with Assistant Minister Li Chenggang of the Chinese Ministry of Commerce on May 15 at ICC Jeju on the occasion of the 2025 APEC MRT Meeting and discussed bilateral economic cooperation and trade issues including negotiations on the service and investment sectors of the Korea-China FTA. date2025-05-15

Trade Minister meets Mexico's Undersecretary of Foreign Trade

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong met with Mexico's Undersecretary of Foreign Trade Luis Rosendo Gutiérrez Romano on May 14 at ICC Jeju on the occasion of the 2025 APEC MRT Meeting and discussed bilateral economic cooperation. date2025-05-15

Korea and Philippines sign MOU for trade, energy, and economic cooperation

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong held an MOU signing ceremony with Philippine Trade and Industry Secretary Maria Cristina Aldeguer-Roque on May 14 at ICC Jeju on the occasion of the 2025 APEC MRT Meeting for bilateral cooperation in trade, economy, and energy. date2025-05-15

Minister Ahn awards companies at 22nd Automotive Day

Korea’s Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy attended the 22nd Automotive Day on May 14 in Seoul with the participation of 200 industry representatives and awarded 34 medals and orders of merit including the Silver Tower Order of Industrial Service Merit, which went to Anjun Industrial Co. for its contribution to the mass production of Korea’s first hybrid vehicle hollow stem valve. date2025-05-15

Trade Minister meets Philippine Trade and Industry Secretary

Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong held bilateral talks with Philippine Trade and Industry Secretary Maria Cristina Aldeguer-Roque on May 14 at ICC Jeju on the occasion of the 2025 APEC MRT Meeting and discussed APEC outcomes and measures to invigorate Korea-Philippine trade and investment. date2025-05-15

Trade Minister attends 1st ASEAN-ROK Think-tank Dialogue on Economic and Trade Policy

Korea’s Minister for Trade Inkyo Cheong attended the first ASEAN-ROK Think-tank Dialogue on Economic and Trade Policy (AKTD) on May 14 on Jeju Island, held with the participation of approximately 100 representatives from Korean and ASEAN major think tanks, the ASEAN Secretariat, Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA), the Asia Foundation, Yonsei University, and the Korea-Southeast Asia Policy Cooperation Center. date2025-05-15