2019 Asia-Pacific Economic Integration Seminar in US

June 2019

On June 19, JETRO and the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) jointly hosted a conference under the title "Asia-Pacific Economic Integration Seminar: Is the United States Decoupling from Asia’s Economic Architecture?" in Washington, DC.

Opening remarks were presented by Congresswoman Stephanie Murphy (D-FL), Member of the Subcommittee on Trade of the House Ways and Means Committee, and Marc Knapper, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Japan and Korea. Following that, in his keynote speech JETRO Chairman and CEO Nobuhiko Sasaki touched on the fact that business in the digital field based on innovation has been thriving in the Asia-Pacific, and emphasized the necessity of improving the environment in order to further facilitate the trend. At the same time, he emphasized that the sharpening of the conflict and expansion of taxable areas through additional tariffs between the US and China will increase uncertainty in the business environment, and pointed out that there is concern that business expansion will decline in the region. Regarding the role required of the US and Japanese governments under these circumstances, he stated that both countries should lead dialogue in the region, suggesting the need to form a framework and rules for digital trade which can be promoted without impairing innovation.

In the first panel discussion, under the theme of "Regional Perspectives on Indo-Pacific Economic Integration" opinions were exchanged between Yasuyuki Todo, Professor of the Graduate School of Economics at Waseda University in Tokyo; Deborah Elms, Founder and Executive Director of the Asian Trade Centre in Singapore; and Xinquan Tu, Dean and Professor of the Center for WTO Studies at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing. An active discussion was seen regarding the roles of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and China's Belt and Road Initiative in driving economic integration as well as the future of US-China trade negotiations and their impact on the free trade system and international business.

The following panel discussion, under the theme of "Status and Impact of US Trade Policy," was joined by Charles Freeman, Senior Vice President for Asia of the US Chamber of Commerce; Lorraine Hawley, Senior Director of International Government Relations at Archer Daniels Midland Company; and Aaron Cooper, Vice President of Global Policy at BSA, The Software Alliance. A broad range of perspectives were exchanged on the impact of tariffs, trade agreements, decoupling and digital trade on the private sector, as well as on how the private sector should be involved in US trade policy regarding the Asia-Pacific.