Iqbal added that a daunting task remains, as APEC"s long-term vision hinges on binding existing free trade frameworks into the overarching Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP), which has been under discussion since 2006.

　　Siah Hwee Ang, professor in strategy and international business and professorial chair in business in Asia at Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand, said major free trade agreements such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) are key.

　　"To enhance cooperation across the Asia-Pacific region, the promotion of both RCEP and CPTPP will help to kickstart a wider conversation," Ang said.

　　Noting that most members of the RCEP and CPTPP are APEC economies, Ang said the unique benefits of these blocs could attract APEC economies that are not in both.

　　This could potentially pave the way toward the FTAAP, said Ang, who is also a visiting NTUC professor of international economic relations at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.

　　The APEC region is also seeing a trade expansion fueled by the surge in digital trade, artificial intelligence-driven demand for hardware and software, precautionary stockpiling against supply chain disruptions, and deeper business integration, said Ang.

　　Merchandise exports and imports of the APEC region rose 18.8 percent and 10.2 percent by value in the first quarter from a year earlier, respectively, compared with growth of 5.1 percent and 7.9 percent in the same period of 2025, according to data released by the APEC Policy Support Unit on Aug 27.

　　Export and import volumes also increased 10.8 percent and 11.1 percent, respectively, as demand for technology products drove trade across the region.