APEC China Summit 2026 — Shenzhen

What this countdown tracks

The clock above counts down to the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting hosted by China in Shenzhen in November 2026, with an indicative summit date of November 15, 2026. It is China's first APEC host year since 2014 (Beijing) and follows the South Korea (2025), Peru (2024), and US-San Francisco (2023) presidencies of the 21-member trans-Pacific forum.

About this summit

APEC, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, gathers 21 member economies — Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, Russia, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, the United States, and Vietnam — accounting for roughly 60% of global GDP. The host city's APEC year culminates in the Leaders' Week, which combines the CEO Summit, the APEC Ministerial Meeting, and the Leaders' Meeting itself.

China's 2026 presidency, with Shenzhen as host city, signals the country's intent to use APEC as a stage for trade-architecture leadership at a moment when the WTO is paralyzed and bilateral US-China tensions remain high. Shenzhen — a US-China tech-supply-chain crossroads home to Huawei, Tencent, BYD, and DJI — is a deliberate venue choice.

Agenda

Expect headline items on regional integration (RCEP implementation, FTAAP "pathways" workstream), supply-chain resilience and digital trade, decarbonization and the Bioeconomy work programme, AI governance, and inclusive growth. Bilateral meetings on the sidelines — particularly any Trump-Xi pull-aside — typically dominate the news cycle.

Past summits

• 2025: APEC South Korea (Gyeongju).
• 2024: APEC Peru (Lima).
• 2023: APEC United States (San Francisco).
• 2022: APEC Thailand (Bangkok).
• 2021: APEC New Zealand (virtual).
• 2014: APEC China (Beijing).

How to follow

Official summit materials publish at apec.org. Domestic coverage from CCTV, Xinhua, and the People's Daily; international coverage from Reuters Beijing, Bloomberg, Nikkei Asia, and Channel News Asia. Standard hashtag: #APEC2026.

Related countdowns

Pair this with peer multilateral pages: ASEAN Summit Cebu 2026, G20 Miami 2026, G20 UK 2027, BRICS Summit 2027, and Davos 2027.

FAQ

When is APEC China 2026? Indicative leaders' meeting date November 15, 2026; the full Leaders' Week typically runs five days. Where is it held? Shenzhen, Guangdong province, China. Why does APEC China 2026 matter? It is China's first APEC host year since 2014 and a marquee Asia-Pacific economic-cooperation venue at a tense US-China moment. Is Russia still a member? Yes — APEC has retained all members, though Russian leader attendance has been reduced since 2022.