Fireworks explode over a screen displaying the APEC logo on the National Stadium (Reuters)

Leaders of APEC economies—including United States President Barack Obama, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin—will meet in China's capital on Nov. 5.

Representing a greater than 2.8 billion population, APEC was founded in 1989, beginning as an informal Ministerial-level dialogue group with 12 founding members. In 1993, APEC economic leaders met for the first time in Blake Island, off the coast of Washington State. In 1998, Vietnam joined APEC as the last economy.

Although only leaders attend the annual summit, APEC is not that far away from some people's daily lives. 

Jun Liu, 25, born in the same year APEC started, is a University of Southern California Chinese student in the International Academy’s Master Preparation program. 

When she was 11, the APEC endorsed the Tourism Charter at the first Tourism Ministerial Meeting in Korea to promote growth in the region’s tourism. Nine years later, Liu went to Korea to travel in her first time abroad. 

The tariff of Asia-Pacific has dropped from 16.9 percent to 5.8 percent in the past 25 years. “When I was a child, I barely saw imported food at supermarket, now imported goods are more and more accessible and cheap,” Liu said.

She bought jackfruit and rice noodles from Thailand and candy from Vietnam when she lived in Beijing. She still buys imported foods like those here in Los Angeles supermarkets, except that she now also purchases dumplings, sauces and noodles imported from China. “What I eat here in the United States is pretty much the same as I was in China,” said Liu. 

“From aspects of clothes and foods, my life hasn’t changed because I moved to the United States from China,” Liu added. Liu’s favorite mascara is a Japanese brand. Her daily-use skin care products are from the United States. Liu likes clothes and shoes made from Hong Kong. No matter where she is, she is able to get her favorite things within several days.

(Yingzhi Yang/Neon Tommy)

Reach Staff Reporter Yingzhi Yang here. Follow her on Twitter here.