Diversified aviation security measures can help to ensure passenger safety and improve operational efficiency at increasingly busy airports in the Asia-Pacific without the need for significant investments.

Improved emergency planning among businesses in the Asia-Pacific is needed to boost their ability to limit potential disruptions to commercial activity in the world’s most natural disaster-prone region.

APEC Trade Ministers concluded their meeting on Sunday in Surabaya by issuing a Statement that outlines collective solutions for addressing challenges that could impact the Asia-Pacific’s economic landscape.

Despite a setback to global economic recovery in 2012, growth in the APEC region was sustained by a rise in intra-regional trade, investment and domestic consumption, according to new APEC Policy Support Unit research that was presented at the APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade meeting earlier today in Surabaya, Indonesia.

APEC member economies are in a position to provide an added boost to the world economy and the multilateral trading system. This is vital to sustaining the gradual recovery that appears to be currently underway, said Gita Wirjawan, Indonesia’s Trade Minister when he opened the APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade Meeting on Saturday in Surabaya.

APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade will convene this weekend in Surabaya, Indonesia to lay out a realistic path for rejuvenating trade and global growth.

The projected gains of opening services sectors are almost twice as big as the gains from the liberalization of merchandise trade. The potential benefits for the Asia-Pacific region were examined by APEC Senior Officials, business representatives and academics during an APEC a services dialogue this week in Surabaya.

Economic activity in many APEC member economies was adversely affected by heightened concerns about the Euro area’s sovereign debt issues and weaker trade last year. But growth in the region in general appears to be improving and is set to gradually accelerate which could provide a boost to the world economy.

APEC member economies are moving toward the establishment of a unified connectivity framework to lower business costs, bring people together and enhance the region’s economic resilience.

Infrastructure that can facilitate increased trade flows and development is critical to ensuring that growth is balanced and sustainable. This is prompting APEC member economies to pursue viable mechanisms for improving infrastructure investment in the region.