By Zhang Zhongkai
BEIJING, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- Facing sluggish growth and rising anti-globalization sentiment, the Asia Pacific region needs economic integration to renew vitality more than ever before.
The global economy and world trade are experiencing the longest slowdown since the financial crisis, as structural problems or previous policy hangovers continue to weigh on growth.
Such economic doldrums have prompted many countries to take to protectionism as a shortcut out of the mire, and it seems anti-globalization in terms of trade, investment and population flow is set to be a new fashion post-Brexit.
The number of trade restriction policies grew from 381 in the middle of 2010 to 1,263 by mid-October this year, according to the World Trade Organization, which has warned that restrictive trade policies are hampering global growth.
As economic globalization and regional economic integration face challenges, trade and investment seem to be losing steam, but such trends are inevitable and what is actually needed is an updated model.
As it happens, bilateral and multilateral free trade and investment agreements have been growing fast in the past few years. The problem is that they are far too fragmented. For example, the 21 members of APEC saw about 160 free trade agreements reached between them in 2015.
The Asia Pacific region is the most dynamic region on earth, with a GDP that accounts for about 60 percent of the world's total, and shows the greatest potential for growth.
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