APEC SUMMIT ENDS WITH CHINESE FREE-TRADE PROGRESS

After two days of meetings at the Beijing-hosted Asia-PacificEconomic Cooperation summit, leaders of the 21 regional economies agreed to begin work toward possible adoption of a free-trade pact proposed by China, APreports. A two-year study of the initiative will be launched with the U.S. and Russia also on board, a decision that China’s Xi Jinping described as a “historic step.” Beijing and Washington also reached a breakthroughin bilateral talks over a possible free trade deal on information technology products.

• The summit saw U.S. President Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin briefly meet to talk about Ukraine, Syria and Iran, the White House said. But although the two leaders tried to be nice to each other in front of cameras, AP writes that “away from the cameras, the two leaders are circling each other warily.”