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APEC leaders conclude meetings with joint declarations

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Chinese President Hu Jintao (C front) talks with U.S. President Barack Obama (R) before the second session of the 18th Economic Leaders' Meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) in Yokohama, Japan, Nov. 14, 2010. [Lan Hongguang/Xinhua]

Leaders from 21 member economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum concluded their meeting on Sunday after adopting a leaders' declaration that pledged further efforts in free trade and balanced economic growth.

Speaking on behalf of the leaders after adoption of the document, Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan said the APEC "will move forward with trade and investment liberalization and facilitation and promote deeper economic integration as we pursue an economically integrated community."

In the declaration called "The Yokohama Vision -- Bogor and Beyond," APEC leaders pledged to "take concrete steps" toward realization of a Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP).

"An FTAAP should be pursued as a comprehensive free trade agreement by developing and building on ongoing regional undertakings, such as ASEAN+3, ASEAN+6, and the Trans-Pacific Partnership, among others," the declaration said.

The APEC is championing a collective growth strategy that emphasizes high-quality development at a time when the region is recovering from the financial crisis but facing uncertainty. APEC member economies "will implement the Growth Strategy out to 2015, focusing on the five desired attributes of balanced, inclusive, sustainable, innovative, and secure growth."

In a separate statement on the strategy, the leaders recognized that APEC members cannot continue with "growth as usual" and "the quality of growth" needs to be improved.

To this end, the leaders mapped out an action plan for the strategy, which encompasses the critical integrated work elements such as structural reform, human resource and entrepreneurship development, green growth, knowledge-based economy and human security.

The declaration also included a commitment to "moving toward more market-determined exchange rate systems."

At the same time, "advanced economies, including those with reserve currencies, will be vigilant against excess volatility and disorderly movements in exchange rates," the document said.

Separate statements were adopted at the conclusion of the meeting in the Japanese port city on an FTAAP and the Bogor Goals of free and open trade and investment.

In 1994, APEC leaders gathering in Bogor, Indonesia announced a commitment to achieving free and open trade and investment by 2010 for industrialized economies and by 2020 for developing economies.

In Yokohama, the leaders assessed progress toward achieving the Bogor Goals by the five APEC industrialized economies -- Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand and the United States -- and eight volunteer developing economies that include South Korea, Singapore and China's Hong Kong.

They noted that, while progress has been significant, the assessment "has also highlighted the areas where barriers to trade and investment remain and accordingly, where more concerted progress can be made by the APEC, a leaders' statement on the Bogor Goals said.

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