TOKYO, Oct. 31 -- Prime Minister and His Cabinet issued the following information:

On October 31 (local time), from 10:00 a.m. for approximately two and a half hours, the first session of the APEC Leaders' Meeting (theme:"Towards a More Connected, Resilient Region and Beyond") was held in Gyeongju, the Republic of Korea (ROK). The session was chaired by H.E. Mr. LEE Jae Myung, President of the ROK, and attended by Ms. TAKAICHI Sanae, Prime Minister of Japan. The overview of the session is as follows. 1. At the outset, President LEE, as Chair of the Meeting, delivered opening remarks. This was followed by a briefing from H.E.Ms. Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on the global economic outlook for this year. 2. Prime Minister TAKAICHI emphasized that, amid growing uncertainty in the global economy, innovation through trade, investment, and public-private partnership is essential for the Asia-Pacific region to remain an engine of growth, and outlined the following two key points as Japan's priorities:

(1) The rules-based, free, and fair economic order that has enabled the sustainable development of the Asia-Pacific region is of vital importance. Japan will continue to contribute to developing a level playing field and further promoting trade and investment through such efforts as the expansion of the CPTPP, while maintaining and strengthening its high standards, as well as ensuring the transparent implementation of the RCEP. At the same time, Japan emphasized the need to address the pressing issues that the WTO is facing.

(2) Japan attaches importance to promoting strategic growth investment through public-private partnership, with a focus on fosterting innovation in growth sectors such as AI, digital, and energy, as well as diversifying supply chains and developing high-quality infrastructure to enhance resilience against risks of natural disasters. 3. Many of the participating leaders expressed that, amid icreasing uncertainty in the world, both the multilateral trading system, with the WTO at its core, and public-private partnership to promote trade and investment, are of critical importance for the sustainable growth and prosperity of the Asia-Pacific region.

Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.