SAN FRANCISCO - Trade is critical but trade policy is tough, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said after United States President Joe Biden's signature economic initiative in the Asia-Pacific hit a roadblock on trade.
"Trade is the lifeblood of the global economy. And the trade pillar is an integral part of the IPEF agreement and of the US' economic and strategic engagement in the region," PM Lee said at a meeting here of 14 nations that are part of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF).
"But developing new and creative approaches to trade policy is not easy, and it takes time in order to carefully work through sensitive areas, and to choose the best moment to commit to the deal," he added.
Announced by Mr Biden in May 2022, the IPEF is the centrepiece of US economic engagement in a region where most nations count China as their top trading partner.
It consists of four pillars: trade, supply chain, clean energy and anti-corruption.
Meeting on the sidelines of the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) leaders' summit on Nov 16, IPEF leaders announced progress on three of the four pillars.
They signed a landmark agreement to prevent supply chain disruptions, and announced that they had substantially concluded agreements on clean energy and anti-corruption measures.
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