2026 APEC Finance Ministers' Meeting Held in Hong Kong

From October 20 to 21, 2026, the 33rd APEC Finance Ministers' Meeting was held in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China. Minister of Finance Lan Fo'an, as Chair of the Meeting, presided over the meeting and delivered remarks. Vice Minister of Finance Liao Min spoke on behalf of the Chinese side. Chen Xu, Chair of the 2026 APEC Senior Officials' Meeting, attended and addressed the meeting. John Lee Ka-chiu, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, attended the welcome dinner. More than 300 representatives from APEC member economies, APEC observers, and relevant international organizations attended the meeting. The meeting focused on the theme of APEC China Year, "Building an Asia-Pacific Community to Promote Common Prosperity," and held discussions on topics including the global and regional macroeconomic and financial situation, fiscal policies supporting livelihood development, financing for digital infrastructure, promoting inclusive finance in light of local conditions, and promoting exchanges and cooperation among APEC youth financial and economic talents. The meeting reviewed and adopted the 2026 APEC Finance Ministers' Joint Statement and the Asia-Pacific Regional Policy Statement on Financing Digital Infrastructure, charting the course for Asia-Pacific economies to deepen fiscal and financial cooperation. The meeting also produced outcome documents including the Report on Supporting Livelihood Development and Investing in PeopleFiscal Policies for Promoting Sustainable Growth in the Asia-Pacific Region and the Compilation of Innovative Practices in Inclusive Finance in the Asia-Pacific Region, and agreed to continue advancing exchanges and cooperation among youth financial and economic talents in the Asia-Pacific region. Lan Fo'an noted that the current international landscape is marked by turbulence and intertwined changes, the spillover effects of geopolitical conflicts are felt widely, and world economic growth faces multiple challenges. As a major economic cooperation platform in the Asia-Pacific region, APEC actively promotes openness and cooperation among members, strengthens macroeconomic policy coordination, advances regional economic integration, and contributes to common development and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific. All parties should firmly implement the consensus of the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting, uphold multilateralism, deepen practical cooperation in the fiscal and financial fields, and contribute to regional economic and financial stability and long-term sustainable growth. Lan Fo'an introduced the sustained momentum of China's economy toward new, better, and more positive development, and stressed that China will unswervingly promote high-quality development, accelerate the cultivation of new growth drivers, strive to expand domestic demand, continue to expand high-standard opening up, and, with new achievements in Chinese modernization, provide new opportunities for the development of the Asia-Pacific and the world. Before the meeting, a closed-door finance ministers' meeting and a working luncheon between finance ministers and Asia-Pacific business representatives were held, respectively discussing topics such as promoting Asia-Pacific economic growth in a changing world and mobilizing private capital to support digital infrastructure development, with good results. During the meeting, Lan Fo'an held bilateral meetings as arranged with Liu Guangming, Minister at the Ministry of Finance of Brunei; Ngo Van Tuan, Minister of Finance of Vietnam; Jim Chalmers, Treasurer of Australia; and Jeffrey Siow, Minister for Transport and Second Minister for Finance of Singapore, among others, exchanging views on the global and regional macroeconomic situation, cooperation between China and relevant economies under APEC and ASEAN Plus Three frameworks, and bilateral cooperation. Lan Fo'an also met with John Lee Ka-chiu, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.