Study on APEC's Non-binding Principles for Domestic Regulation of the Services Sector: A Focus on Domestic Regulations in Trade Agreements

APEC economies are increasingly streamlining their domestic regulations for the services sector towards a goal of eliminating barriers to services trade and reducing trade costs. Notably, trade negotiations in the Asia Pacific and beyond are increasingly focusing their attention on the regulatory aspects affecting trade as a necessary complement to the traditional market access-focused approach. This study examines how recent trade initiatives (whose signatories include multiple APEC members) present modern principles for domestic regulations in their text, demonstrating how APEC economies are moving towards greater convergence in domestic regulation rulemaking, and how APEC’s non-binding nature is influencing negotiation processes and domestic regulatory reform within and beyond the Asia-Pacific region.