SAN FRANCISCO: President Joe Biden highlighted strong US ties to the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum economies on Thursday (Nov 16) and called on CEOs there to treat workers fairly, even as a regional trade deal stumbled over workers’ rights.
Before a working lunch and speech to heads of the 21-member APEC governments at their annual summit, Biden spoke to an audience of CEOs, touting investments by US companies in the region including Amazon, Delta Air Lines, PepsiCo, Apple and Boeing.
Stressing the strength of the US economy, he said 60 per cent of U.S. exports went to APEC countries and American businesses were the largest source of foreign direct investment in those economies, committing at least US$40 billion in 2023.
“You can count on the United States” to be a “strong and steady partner,” he said. Companies based in other APEC economies have invested more than US$200 billion in the US since the start of his administration in 2021, he said.
Biden said his administration would keep working to improve labour standards and uphold commitments to unions. Hopes for a trade deal among the 14 countries in the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) were dashed this week. Members could not agree on improving labour and environmental standards or compliance, people briefed on the talks said.
“The questions we must answer today are not about how much we trade, but about how we build resilience, lift up working people, reduce carbon emissions, and set up our economies to succeed over the long run,” Biden said.
“How to deliver growth from the bottom up and middle, so no one gets left behind”, said the president, who held a high-stakes summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday aimed at steadying tense relations.