The APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) opened its three-day meeting in Vietnam's capital Hanoi Tuesday afternoon to discuss trade and investment liberalization, finance, capacity building and other related issues.

Attended by 196 delegates and chaired by Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) Vice Chairman Hoang Van Dung, the meeting has "Driving forward a prosperous and harmonized APEC community" as its theme in 2006.

Addressing the opening plenary session, Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet said ABAC has made great contribution to speeding up trade and investment facilitation and liberalization, and strengthening cooperation among economies in the region.

He called on the APEC member economies to strengthen cooperation in such fields as improving business environment, more effectively tapping natural resources, encouraging technology transfer, and coping with the regional aging population with decreasing number of people in the working age.

Founded by APEC economic leaders in November 1995 to provide important business advice to the leaders, ABAC comprises of up to three representatives from the private economic sector of each of 21 APEC member economies.

ABAC has had three meetings previously in 2006 in Singapore, Canada and the Philippines respectively, all under the chairmanship of VCCI.