APEC's digital agenda: Flow, trust and growth

Added: 2026-05-20

[00:00:00]APEC has entered Shanghai time, bringing together [music] officials and businesses to discuss some of the biggest challenges facing the global economy. For more than a week, the city has been hosting meetings of senior officials and business representatives from APEC, representing about 40% of the world's population and [music] roughly 60% of global GDP.

[00:00:22]This year, two topics are taking the center stage, trade and digital transformation. As global uncertainty grows, APEC economies are looking at how to improve trade and investment liberalization, strengthen supply chains, and boost regional connectivity.

[00:00:37][music] At the same time, digital technology is rapidly reshaping the way economies grow.

[00:00:44]Also high on the agenda are the cross-border data flows and digital rules, and how [music] economies work together to build a more connected and trusted digital environment.

[00:00:54]>> Back in 2011, >> [music] >> the APEC cross-border privacy rules, or CBPR, system was endorsed to build trust in cross-border flows of personal information. It created a voluntary accountability-based framework for companies to show that their privacy practices meet baseline requirements.

[00:01:14]>> The world develops increasingly with AI and the digital economy, so it's important, um, I think to be following, uh, all of these topics. Digital economy, artificial intelligence, uh, electronic commerce are very important issues. [music] We're glad to see that, uh, China is, uh, putting a lot of, uh, uh, of, um, importance to those issues.

[00:01:39]From AI and smart manufacturing to cross-border e-commerce and digital trade, economies across the Asia-Pacific are exploring new opportunities for innovation.