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OpinionHong Kong Opinion
Regina Ip
Opinion
Regina Ip

In a fractured world, Hong Kong must seize its Apec moment

The city will host the finance ministers’ meeting in October. It could seize the day and deepen cooperation with like-minded cities

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The Hong Kong skyline, seen on February 28, 2025. Photo: Nora Tam
Regina Ip
Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee is convenor of the Executive Council and chairwoman of the New People’s Party.

Although no joint communique was issued after the summit between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump in Beijing, details of the trade and economic understandings reached have gradually emerged.

Following the summit, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and China’s Ministry of Commerce confirmed that Washington and Beijing would continue discussions on tariff reductions and the expansion of bilateral trade. Bessent expressed hope that a proposed board of trade and board of investment could provide a new framework for managing economic relations between the two countries. He also confirmed that China had agreed to purchase 200 Boeing aircraft and US$17 billion worth of agricultural goods.

Further negotiations may even lead to the removal of tariffs in non-sensitive sectors, covering trade worth at least US$30 billion.

After more than a year of tense negotiations, during which China managed to withstand and push back against Trump’s de facto trade embargo, the summit demonstrated how leader-level diplomacy can help restore a measure of stability and predictability to an increasingly fragmented global trading system.

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