Asian finance ministers and central bankers called for unity and reaffirmed their commitment to fair and free trade amid rising protectionism that they said weighs on the global economy.
"We call for enhanced regional unity and cooperation as we endeavor to weather the heightened uncertainty," officials from Japan, China, South Korea and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) said in a statement on Sunday in Milan, on the sidelines of the annual meeting of the Asian Development Bank.
"Amid rising uncertainties and long-term structural shifts, we reaffirm our full commitment to multilateralism, and a rules-based, non-discriminatory, free, fair, open, inclusive, equitable and transparent multilateral trading system, with the World Trade Organization at its core," they said.
The meeting comes as Donald Trump's tariff salvos shake global markets and begin to weigh on global commerce. As officials negotiate how they can avoid or at least lessen so-called "reciprocal tariffs," the US president says some trade deals could come as soon as this week.
The region's officials aim to rebuild fiscal policy buffers, recalibrate monetary policy based on domestic conditions and retain exchange-rate flexibility as a buffer against external shocks, according to the statement.
They also said they support the implementation of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, a trade framework among Asia-Pacific countries.
