What has been APEC's economic impact in Peru?

It must be noted that the preparatory meetings have already begun in the South American nation.

Peru has been an APEC forum member since 1998, a fact that represented an important milestone for Peruvian foreign policy, since it has enabled our economy to consolidate its international outreach across the Asia-Pacific region —the most innovative, dynamic, and fastest growing one around the world.

Thus, the forum has enabled Peru to connect with the largest markets, providing opportunities for more inclusive and sustainable development.

Similarly, it has favored the integration of Peruvian companies into value chains at regional and global level, as well as the internationalization process of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

According to the Peruvian Foreign Trade Society (ComexPeru), since the country's entry into APEC, our trade with other member economies has grown by an average of 12% per year.

Besides, 

66% of Peru's trade in goods is currently carried out with other APEC economies.

During the aforementioned period, bilateral free trade agreements have also been negotiated with important APEC members such as: China, Singapore, Thailand, the United States, Canada, South Korea, Chile, Mexico, Japan, and Australia. Thanks to these efforts, approximately 1,500 SMEs and 2,200 MSMEs trade more efficiently with the Asia-Pacific region.

Another important milestone was the APEC Peru 2016 Presidency —an event that encouraged the visit of more than 1,200 businesspeople from the Asia-Pacific region, which in turn generated investment opportunities worth approximately US$9.4 billion, as well as the enhancement of infrastructure for international meetings.

Recently, in 2021, Peru consolidated as a State Party to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) —a mechanism promoted by APEC.

During the same year, around 5,200 Peruvian companies exported goods worth US$37.994 billion to the APEC zone, while our imports from this bloc reached US$30.479 billion.

Between 2016 and 2021, Peru received US$2.823 million as APEC funds allocated to finance 36 projects presented in the following Working Groups of the Economic and Technical Cooperation Committee: Small and Medium-sized Enterprises; Science, Technology, and Innovation; Food safety; Health; Oceans and Fishing; Transportation; Group of Experts on Illegal Logging and Associated Trade; plus, Women and Economy.

Thus, the importance of the economic and technical cooperation offered by APEC to Peru is evident.

The APEC Peru 2024 Presidency grants the possibility of promoting the advancement of social diplomacy aimed at addressing the important economic and social challenges of Peru through international cooperation.