115 Fortune Global 500 companies to attend APEC CEO Summit in Shenzhen

A total of 115 Fortune Global 500 companies will attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit 2026, scheduled for November 17-18 in South China's Shenzhen, the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) said at a press briefing on Sunday.

Li Qingshuang, vice chairman of the CCPIT, said at the event that US participants make up the largest group from economies other than China, accounting for nearly 20 percent of the total. Heads of several international organizations and business associations from the US, Russia, Japan and other economies will also be on site to join the gathering.

At the fourth meeting of the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC), Chinese representatives put forward proposals on artificial intelligence (AI) applications, zero-carbon transport, cross-border QR-code payments, green agriculture and supply-chain cooperation, according to Wu Meng, head of the international department of the CCPIT.

And, Chinese representatives worked with US business representatives on a joint proposal to strengthen Asia-Pacific supply-chain cooperation, and with Canadian business representatives on an "AI plus" joint proposal - pushing the initiatives from concepts into concrete business action and deepening the substance of APEC's business agenda.

Wu noted that a Chinese proposal to set up a connectivity working group - revived after an eight-year hiatus - has won broad support, reflecting a clear consensus among Asia-Pacific businesses on strengthening regional infrastructure and institutional connectivity, the Securities Times reported.

Xu Liang, deputy secretary-general of the China Chamber of International Commerce, said more than 130 representative Shenzhen-based companies from various sectors will join the summit, with several local tech and manufacturing leaders invited to panel discussions on cooperation with the broader APEC business community.

In the first three quarters of 2026, Shenzhen's trade with other APEC economies reached 3.23 trillion yuan ($484 billion), up 40 percent year on year - leading all Chinese mainland cities and underscoring the city's long-term footprint in the Asia-Pacific market.

Under the theme "To Prosper and Win the Future Together", government and business representatives from APEC economies will gather at the upcoming summit to exchange views on major issues, including the building of the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP), connectivity, AI, digital economy, the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and sustainable development, and offer insights and recommendations for promoting economic growth across the Asia-Pacific region. The APEC CEO Summit 2026 will bring together around 1,000 delegates.

And, representatives from Asia-Pacific business communities have expressed high hopes for this week's events in Shenzhen.

"Our experience shows how open trade, stable relationships and mutually beneficial cooperation can create lasting value for participating economies and contribute to shared prosperity across the APEC region," Teh-han Chow, CEO of Greater China of New Zealand dairy giant Fonterra, told the Global Times on Sunday.

"At our Edendale site in New Zealand, for example, an electric boiler manufactured in China has replaced coal-fired equipment, significantly reducing emissions from milk processing," Chow said.