Hanoi (VNA) – Representatives from the US and 13other countries joined a ministerial talk on the Indo-Pacific EconomicFramework (IPEF) in San Francisco on November 13.

Progress was made on some aspects but "no substantialagreement was reached" for the whole trade area, Japanese Trade MinisterYasutoshi Nishimura was quoted by Kyodo News as saying following the firstworking day of the meeting.

Other economic issues will be discussed on November 14 bythe trade ministers of the 14 member countries.

The meeting is taking place on the thresholds of the APECEconomic Leaders’ Meeting in San Francisco.  

Since the IPEF initiative was launched by US President Joe Bidenin Japan in May 2022, officials have been trying to create common rules andstandards across four pillars - trade, supply chains, clean energy andinfrastructure, and tax and anti-corruption - to help all the members achievefaster and more equitable growth.

The ministers are expected to largely agree on language forthe third and fourth pillars, after doing so for supply chains in May. Collectively,the group accounts for about 40 percent of the global economy.

Countries participating in the discussion on IPEF currentlyinclude the US, Australia, Brunei, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, NewZealand, Philippines, Singapore, the Republic of Korea, Thailand, and Vietnam./.