CHILE

August 15 saw the start of activities around the Third Meeting of High Representatives of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum (APEC). Until August 30, delegates and experts from APEC countries will be discussing different topics, such as intellectual property, technology, e-commerce, innovation and digital economy,  in the Chilean town of Puerto Varas.

The APEC Sub-Committee on Customs Procedures, chaired by the Director and the Head of the International Affairs Department of the Chilean National Customs Service, will meet on August 18 and 19. The group has been focusing on resuming central discussions for the customs sector, such as cross-border e-commerce and the incorporation of SMEs into international trade. 

The subcommittee’s activities include the APEC Customs-Business Dialogue (ACBD) will be meeting to discuss “Cross-Border Electronic Commerce and Customs Regulatory Challenges”, matters of common interest between the public and private sectors in the context of the exponential growth in traditional goods transactions on electronic platforms, which will take place on Saturday 17.

This sub-committee has been working to foster foreign trade opportunities  including tools for the implementation of the WTO’s Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), and contributions to the “Integration 4.0” initiative. This is because the challenges of economic integration demand that efforts focus on actions related to logistical aspects, not only on reducing goods tariffs.

The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum is made up of 21 economies representing 40% of the world’s population, 60% of global GDP and 50% of total world trade. Its purpose is to consolidate the growth of its members, and for this reason it deals with issues related to trade, economic coordination and international cooperation. APEC does not have a formal treaty, its decisions are made by consensus and it operates on the basis of non-binding declarations.