APEC Leader's declaration at Singapore 2009

Here is the declaration of the Apec leaders at the Singapore 2009 meeting.

Here are some key paragraphs:

Looking beyond supporting the recovery, we recognise the necessity to develop a new growth paradigm for the changed post-crisis landscape, and an expanded trade and investment agenda that will strengthen regional economic integration (REI) in the Asia-Pacific region. We cannot go back to “growth as usual”. We will put in place next year a comprehensive long-term growth strategy that supports more balanced growth within and across economies, achieves greater inclusiveness in our societies, sustains our environment, and which seeks to raise our growth potential through innovation and a knowledge-based economy.

Supporting Balanced Growth

We support the goals of the G-20 Framework for Strong, Sustainable and Balanced Growth. We join in their commitment to:

* Work together to ensure that our macroeconomic, regulatory and structural policies are collectively consistent with more sustainable and balanced trajectories of growth;

* Promote current account sustainability and open trade and investment to advance global prosperity and growth sustainability;

* Undertake macro prudential and regulatory policies to help prevent credit and asset price cycles from becoming forces of destabilisation; and

* Promote development and poverty reduction as part of the rebalancing of global growth.

Resisting Protectionism

We firmly reject all forms of protectionism and reaffirm our commitment to keep markets open and refrain from raising new barriers to investment or to trade in goods and services, and instruct our Ministers to continue to regularly review our adherence to these commitments. These efforts reinforce the WTO’s own monitoring mechanism, and act as another bulwark against protectionist pressures by ensuring transparency in the measures taken in response to the crisis.