APEC is very important region and driver of future global growth: U.S. scholar

The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) is a very important region and driver of future global growth, said a professor at Georgetown University's McDonough School of Business.

The professor, Arthur Dong made the remarks ahead of this year's APEC meeting, which will be held in Peru from Nov. 10 to Nov. 16 under the overarching theme of "Empower, Include, Grow."

"It is one of the largest multilateral trade organizations in the entire world. And when you look at the significance of APEC, in terms of their size, almost two thirds of global trade is conducted within this body. This is quite a remarkable sort of story of growth," he said.

Established in 1989, the organization has evolved into one of the largest multilateral trade bodies in the world. Originally founded with twelve members, including the United States, Australia, Japan, and Malaysia, APEC welcomed China in 1991, followed by Peru, Russia, and Vietnam in 1998. Since then, the forum has expanded its reach and significance, particularly in light of China's rapid economic development.

China's ascent has been pivotal to APEC's growth. In 1991, the country's GDP was less than 400 billion U.S. dollars; today, it's about 18 trillion U.S. dollars.

"China's role has been enormous. This was a pivotal period in China's opening and reform period, where China really started to accelerate its opening up to the rest of the world. China is a very important trade partner, and a very important member, disproportionately also, as a part of this trade body," Dong said.

Currently, APEC economies account for approximately 60 percent of global GDP, and with continuous economic growth projected in the Asia-Pacific region, the forum's importance is expected to rise.

"This is an organization that's at the right time and at the right place. GDP is growing at a level that's greater than other parts of the world. So, all those things taken into consideration make APEC and the APEC member region, a very important region and driver of future global growth," Dong said.

Bringing together around 20,000 participants, including heads of state and dignitaries from 21 member economies across Asia, the Pacific, North America, and South America, APEC aims to foster sustainable economic growth and prosperity in the region.

APEC is very important region and driver of future global growth: U.S. scholar

The European Central Bank (ECB) announced on Thursday that it would slash key interest rates by 25 basis points in a bid to wind down the restrictive monetary policy.

Effective from March 12, the interest rates on the deposit facility, the main refinancing operations and the marginal lending facility will be decreased to 2.50 percent, 2.65 percent and 2.90 percent respectively, said the central bank in a statement.

The disinflation process is well on track, with headline inflation averaging 2.3 percent in 2025, 1.9 percent in 2026 and 2.0 percent in 2027, the ECB said.

The decision to keep on cutting rates came at a time when the economy in the eurozone is facing increasing uncertainties.

In its latest edition of the staff projections on Thursday, the ECB lowered its forecast for economic growth in the eurozone to 0.9 percent for 2025, 1.2 percent for 2026 and 1.3 percent for 2027.

This marks a downward revision from the ECB's forecast in December last year, which had projected 1.1 percent growth in 2025 and 1.4 percent in 2026, while the 2027 outlook remains unchanged.

The ECB attributed the weaker growth outlook for 2025 and 2026 to declining exports and sluggish investment, citing high trade policy uncertainty and broader economic instability as key factors.

ECB cuts interest rates by 25 basis points