MANILA -- President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Thursday stated that the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and the countries in the Indo-Pacific and Asia-Pacific regions have managed the balance between cooperation and competition.

“I think one of the great advantages that APEC and the countries in the Indo-Pacific, Asia-Pacific regions have been able to manage is that very difficult balance between cooperation and competition,” the President said during the 2022 APEC Open Forum – The Global Economy and the Future of APEC.

“And yet we [have] seen, for the most part, I would say we have done it. And what has driven the growth of the region is that we are able to compete with one another. But when we find opportunities where partnerships will give the better result, we are all perfectly willing to enter into those partnerships as well,” Marcos pointed out.

“So that I think is going to be key. We have done it before. It is the nature of APEC. If we continue to do that and strengthen that, I think it will be to the great benefit of all countries,” the chief executive added.

Attendees to the open forum include Robert E. Moritz, Global Chairman, of PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and Klaus Schwab, Founder and Chairman of World Economic Forum (WEF). (OPS)