The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum is working to liberalize trade and enhance cooperation among its member economies, currently numbering 21. The United States has vital economic interests within APEC and strives to advance its initiatives. Economic vitality is the ultimate goal of all member countries.
The U.S. Department of Commerce plays a pivotal role in several APEC working groups and committees. Many are sector-specific, such as food safety, cars, intellectual property, privacy, small business development and international sales leads. In addition, the Department of Commerce has worked with APEC to develop an exchange tool for environmental goods and services, a motorcycle safety initiative and measures to limit medical counterfeiting.
All of these efforts help contribute to the effectiveness of APEC, which in turn benefits U.S. exporters. Take for example compliance with inspection and testing standards, which can vary from country to country and can be complicated and expensive. Everyone benefits when APEC can formulate a common framework to address national differences. By aligning each member’s standards along a common international set, the cost of compliance can drop significantly.
Another initiative is the adoption of common data standards for databases that support the effort to sell leads in different countries. International marketing is very important to demand stimulation, and efforts in this area seek to boost the effectiveness of lead sales within APEC economies.
Customs procedures have sometimes been a source of added expense and contention. APEC has sought to harmonize the transfer of goods, people and services across national boundaries, thus lowering costs and easing the flow of products among member economies. One outcome has been a move towards paperless customs procedures. It is felt that cross-border transactions can be more effectively effected if all data flows are automated rather than depending on pieces of paper. The use of up-to-date technology facilitates quicker, more predictable and comprehensible customs clearance and inspection. Low-risk shipments are differentiated from riskier ones, and the proper risk management techniques can be applied to each type of shipment.
E-commerce is another area important both to APEC and the U.S. Department of Commerce. The forum has adopted a set of protocols and legal regimes to prioritize e-commerce as an activity that benefits all trade partners. Trust among businesses and consumers is enhanced by e-commerce because online transactions become transparent, predictable, consistent and open to orderly dispute handling. These efforts have seen the continual reduction of transaction costs within APEC and indeed around the world.